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LEISURE  HOUR  SERIES.— No.   122 


A   LAZY    MAN'S   WORK 


A   NOVEL 


FRANCES   CAMPBELL  SPARHAWK 


NEW  YORK 

HENRY    HOLT   AND   COMPANY 
1881 


Copyright,  1881, 

BY 
HENRY  HOLT  &  CO. 


J.  CAMPBELL, 

FKINTF.R. 
15  Vandewater  St.,  N. 


JOHN    GREENLEAF    WHITTIER, 

F.  C.  S. 


A    LAZY    MAN'S   WORK. 

CHAPTER   I. 

HELEN  BELL  opened  the  door  of  the  waiting-room 
at  the  Cross  Road  Station,  and  found  a  lady  and 
gentleman  seated  there.  She  had  stood  a  few  moments 
on  the  platform  watching  the  train  she  had  left,  as  it 
labored  with  difficulty  through  the  fast-deepening  snow. 
The  December  darkness  had  closed  in  hours  ago,  and  it 
might  be  near  midnight  before  she  reached  her  destina 
tion,  if  indeed  she  were  able  to  reach  it  at  all  while  the 
storm  was  at  its  fury.  For  the  wind  that  swept  in  from 
the  roaring  sea  tossed  about  the  snow  in  emulation  of 
the  waves  it  had  left,  piled  it  in  deep  drifts  across  the 
track,  and  rushed  over  the  plain,  hurling  its  white  burden 
hither  and  thither,  and  making  the  great  veil  of  flakes 
from  sky  to  earth  quiver  and  whirl  as  it  fell. 

Under  these  circumstances  it  was  a  relief  to  the  young 
lady  to  find  that  she  was  not  to  be  alone  while  waiting 
for  the  branch  train. 


2  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

She  had  asked  the  station-master,  in  her  anxiety,  as  she 
heard  the  energetic  snorts  of  the  engine, 
"Shall  we  get  through  to-night?" 
' '  Oh,   I  guess  so, "  said  the  man.      ' '  But  mebbe  't'll 

• 

be  some  time  'fore  it  gits  along,"  and  he  jerked  his  thumb 
over  his  shoulder  toward  the  other  track  which  seemed 
an  unbroken  line  of  white.  "You'll  find  it  good  'n' 
warm  in  the  Ladies'  Room,"  he  added;  "I  'tended  to 
that" 

She  was  thinking,  as  a  tremendous  gust  of  wind  blew 
the  snow  into  her  face  and  almost  took  her  breath  away, 
how  suddenly  the  storm  had  come.  Early  in  the  after 
noon  a  dance  of  white  frost  feathers  through  the  air,  had 
begun,  a  most  exquisite  shower.  She  had  watched  it  with 
delight  as  she  sat  at  home  sketching.  The  flakes  came 
down  like  great  white  feathers  with  a  motion  of  languid 
enjoyment,  and  clung  caressingly  to  everything  they 
touched,  until  all  the  roofs,  and  fences,  and  trees  were 
mantled  in  them.  The  grand  old  elms  across  the  way 
showed  the  finest  tracery,  the  twigs  of  the  linden  stood 
out  like  branching  coral,  no  bush  was  too  insignificant 
to  be  loaded  with  as  much  beauty  as  it  could  bear.  The 
dull  sky  had  a  faint  flush  of  warmth  as  the  cold  blue- 
white  of  the  snow  shone  against  it.  The  air  was  as  still 
as  in  a  summer  noonday;  and  few  summer  noons  couKl 
offer  a  scene  more  exquisitely  beauiiful. 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  3 

Helen  remembered,  however,  that  half  an  hour  later 
as  she  was  preparing  for  her  journey,  her  mother  had  told 
her  of  a  change  in  the  wind,  and  warned  her  that  the  storm 
was  already  increasing,  and  by  night  would  be  very  severe. 

What  an  excellent  illustration  of  the  folly  of  not  mind 
ing  one's  mother  was  furnished  by  the  girl's  situation 
at  this  moment.  She  laughed  as  she  thought  of  it;  then 
her  face  softened  with  the  recollection  of  how  wise  and 
tender  an  adviser  this  mother  had  always  been  to  her. 

She  closed  the  door  of  the  waiting-room  lightly  behind 
her,  and  walked  toward  the  great  coal  stove,  red-hot  in 
places  with  zeal  for  the  comfort  of  its  patrons,  and  stood 
beside  it  a  little  while,  stretching  out  first  one  hand  then 
the  other  toward  the  grateful  heat,  perceiving  thankfully 
without  seeming  to  look  at  her  unknown  fellow-travelers 
that  they  were  persons  whose  presence  would  be  a  satis 
faction  in  this  tedious  waiting. 

"Well,  now,  Jack,"  began  the  stranger  lady,  continu 
ing  a  conversation  interrupted  by  Helen's  entrance,  "tell 
me  the  honest  truth.  What  do  you  think  of  the  pros 
pect  ? " 

As  she  spoke  she  drew  herself  up  and  put  her  hands  to 
her  bonnet  an  instant,  as  a  judge  on  the  bench  might  ad 
just  his  wig  to  listen  with  dignity  to  important  evidence. 

' '  The  last  time  I  looked  at  it, "  came  the  answer,  ' '  it 
was  very  snowy." 


4  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Shall  we  have  to  stay  here  all  night?" 

"Possibly." 

"Oh,  horrors!  Here,  in  this  dreadful  little  room? 
There  isn't  even  a  sofa.  But  you  are  only  teasing  me, 
Jack,  making  me  stay  here  all  night." 

The  gentleman's  laugh  had  a  very  pleasant  ring  in  it 

"  I  make  you  stay  !  "  he  said.  "  How  long  is  it  since 
you  have  invested  me  with  the  office  of  'clerk  of  the 
weather '  ?  " 

' '  Oh,  of  course,  of  course,  you  know  what  I  mean. 
But,  really  now,  do  you  think  so?" 

"I  don't." 

' '  What  did  you  say  it  for,  then  ?  " 

' '  I  did  not  I  said  it  was  possible.  Not  everything 
possible  happens." 

The  lady  looked  at  her  companion  until  her  severe 
expression  relaxed  into  a  smile. 

"You  always  were  a  saucy  boy,  Jack;  and  you  don't 
seem  to  have  outgrown  it" 

Her  hearer  laughed. 

The  lady's  eyes  started  upon  a  tour  of  investigation 
around  the  room. 

"I  declare,"  she  said,  as  they  came  back  to  her  com 
panion's  face,  ' '  it's  worse  than  I  thought,  there  is  not 
even  one  of  those  red-and-blue  pictures  of  the  routes 
here. " 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  5 

"There's  a  time-table  behind  you,  telling  that  the  train 
leaves  for  Lowton  at  half-past  five." 

"It  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  itself,"  said  the  lady.  "It 
must  be  ten  now,  if  it's  anything." 

"Oh,  yes,   it's  something,  but  it  is  only  nine." 

"And,  then,  there's  that  dowdy  bit  of  looking-glass," 
she  went  on,  taking  no  notice  of  this  correction.  ' '  It's 
so  small  I  couldn't  see  even  my  bonnet  in  it." 

' '  Couldn't  you,  really,  Aunt  Delia  ?  "  asked  the  gentle 
man,  with  a  look  of  critical  measurement  from  the  de 
spised  mirror  to  the  speaker's  head-gear.  ' '  I  supposed 
these  little  things  were  a  notion  just  introduced  to  suit 
the  present  style  of  ladies'  bonnets." 

"  Impertinence  ! " 

And  she  tossed  at  him  one  of  the  gloves  lying  in  her 
lap. 

In  dodging  it  he  threw  back  his  head  suddenly,  and 
caught  sight  of  Helen's  face  turned  upon  him,  sparkling 
with  merriment. 

In  another  moment  she  dropped  it  so  low  that  its 
expression  was  hidden,  and  turned  away  to  one  of  the 
settees. 

There  was  a  brief  silence,  then  the  lady  began  again. 

' '  I  know,  of  course,  it's  very  nice  to  do  nothing,  but 
it's  just  horrid  to  have  nothing  to  do.  Confess,  do  you 
like  it?" 


6  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"I  am  not  in  that  predicament." 

' '  Oh,  to  be  sure;  you  have  the  train  to  look  after.  I 
wish  you'd  go  and  see  if  it's  not  coming." 

"It  is  not." 

' '  You  haven't  found  out. " 

"Yes." 

"How  could  you  without  going  to  see?" 

"Occasionally  a  train  can  be  heard  when  it  is  coming." 

"To  be  sure.  But,  then,  you  see,  the  snow  may 
deaden  the  noise.  But  everything  is  all  ready  if  it 
should  come  upon  us  before  we  know  it;  and  you 
won't  forget  my  shawl-strap  ?  It's  not  time  yet,  though. 
Oh,  dear,  no." 

Then  there  came  another  short  pause.  Then  the 
lady  looked  up  wistfully. 

"I  must  be  a  great  bother  to  you,  Jack.  I  suppose 
you  hate  traveling  with  me." 

' '  You're  entirely  wrong,  Aunt  Delia.  I  enjoy  it  very 
much  indeed." 

Aunt  Delia  meditated  profoundly  a  moment. 

"  Like  to  get  fun  out  of  your  poor  old  aunt,  do  you  ? 
Well." 

The  mixture  of  chagrin  and  resignation  in  the  sigh 
which  accompanied  the  last  word  was  inexpressibly 
droll. 

Presently  Helen  caught  the  whispered  question,  "Who 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  7 

do  you  suppose  she  is  ? "  and  the  low  answer,  not  whis 
pered,  ' '  I  don't  know. "  Then,  ' '  I  wonder  where  she 
is  going  ? "  To  this  no  reply  was  vouchsafed. 

The  lady,  saying  she  was  tired  of  sitting  so  long,  rose, 
and  began  to  walk  up  and  down  the  room. 

Then  she  stood  beside  the  stove  for  a  time,  evidently 
debating  something  with  herself,  and  looking  frequently 
and  earnestly  at  the  stranger.  But  there  was  a  dignity 
about  Helen  which  repelled  familiarity,  although,  in  the 
end,  it  was  not  proof  against  good-humored  inquisitive- 
ness. 

The  lady  took  a  few  more  turns  and  then  stopped 
beside  her. 

"My  dear,"  she  said,  "you  haven't  had  anybody  to 
speak  a  word  to  for  an  hour."  The  compassion  of  her 
tone  showed  that  she  felt  herself  touching  upon  one  of 
the  deepest  of  human  ills. 

The  momentary  breadth  of  Helen's  smile  might  be 
pardoned,  for  it  was  very  genial. 

"Thank  you,  madam,  for  ending  my  misfortune." 
And  she  invited  the  lady  to  sit  down  beside  her. 

' '  Waiting  for  the  train  ? "  asked  the  latter,  accepting 
promptly. 

"Yes." 

' '  You  are  going  to  Lowton  ?  " 

"If  I  can  get  there." 


8  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Perhaps  you  live  in  Lowton?" 

"Oh,  no." 

"Going  upon  a  visit  !  " 

' '  Yes,  for  a  visit. " 

' '  You  have  friends  there,   I  presume  ?  " 

"Yes." 

The  lady  suggested  the  possibility  of  meeting  her 
while  in  town.  Helen  politely  acceded  to  this,  but  she 
did  not  fall  into  the  trap  the  other  had  set  for  her  and 
give  the  name  of  her  friends. 

The  inquirer  drew  a  little  morocco  case  from  her 
pocket. 

"I  am  sorry  I  cannot  return  your  courtesy,  Mrs. 
Barney,"  said  Helen  a  moment  afterward.  "I  have  no 
card  with  me,  but  my  name  is  '  Bell. 

"It's  always  safe,"  returned  Mrs.  Barney,  "to  have 
your  name  about  you  in  traveling.  If  the  cars  should 
run  off  the  track  and  take  fire,  and  you  get  burned  up, 
nobody  could  find  out  who  you  were,  to  send  you  to  your 
friends. " 

' '  Wouldn't  the  card  be  burned  up,  too  ?  " 

' '  Well,  I  suppose  it  would  in  that  case.  But  there 
might  be  other  accidents,  you  know;  you  might  be  taken 
ill  suddenly  with  paralysis,  or  something,  and  couldn't 
speak.  But,  my  dear  Miss  Bell,  don't  let  me  alarm  you. 
You  look  in  perfect  health;  and  you  are  young.  But  if 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  9 

you  live,  perhaps  you'll  be  an  old  lady  some  day,  like 
me.  Anyway,  it's  a  good  plan  to  be  careful.  I've  trav 
eled  a  great  deal,  and  I  always  am,  very." 

Mrs.  Barney  soon  begged  leave  to  introduce  her  nephew, 
Mr.  Holden;  and  the  conversation  took  a  wider  range, 
although  Aunt  Delia's  personality  was  of  too  soldierly  a 
nature  ever  to  be  elsewhere  than  in  the  van. 

Helen  enjoyed  her  comments  upon  the  European  tour 
she  had  recently  made;  they  were  sometimes  really  perti 
nent,  and  sometimes  irresistibly  funny. 

She  evidently  had  no  great  admiration  for  the  Eternal 
City;  she  praised  it  languidly,  and  scolded  at  it  heartily. 
She  warmed  up  at  last,  however,  and  laid  her  hand  im 
pressively  on  the  girl's  arm.  As  Helen  waited  for  some 
rhapsody  over  St.  Peter's,  the  Pantheon,  or  a  wonderful 
painting,  she  said  emphatically — 

' '  I  tell  you  what  though,  Miss  Bell,  if  you  ever  go 
there,  Rome's  a  good  place  to  buy  tapes  in,  cheap." 

The  time  passed  very  pleasantly,  and  the  train  came 
before  they  realized  how  long  they  had  been  waiting 
for  it. 

Helen  was  glad  to  be  in  the  company  of  her  new 
acquaintances,  when  the  three  reached  the  deserted  station 
of  Lowton. 

"We're  going  round  to  leave  Miss  Bell  first,  aren't 
we,  Jack  ? "  asked  Mrs.  Barney  as  they  seated  themselves 


10  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

in  the  solitary  hack  that  had  waited  in  the  storm  for  the 
tardy  train. 

"Of  course,"  he  answered. 

Helen  thanked  them  gratefully. 

"Don't  speak  of  it,"  cried  Mrs.  Barney.  "I  couldn't 
think  of  leaving  you  till  I  saw  you  safely  housed;  and 
Jack — he's  always  obliging." 

Mr.  Holden  rang  Mrs.  Edgerly's  door-bell,  and  then 
Helen,  who  saw  that  there  still  were  lights  below,  begged 
him  not  to  keep  Mrs.  Barney  waiting  any  longer.  As 
steps  were  heard  at  the  door,  and  a  heavy  bolt  was  drawn, 
he  left  her. 

But  entrance  was  not  so  easy  as  they  had  imagined, 
for  at  that  moment  a  shrill  voice  cried  out, 

"Don't  open  the  door;  it's  a  tramp." 

There  came  a  pause,  and  a  consultation  in  the  hall, 
not  so  whispered  but  that  Helen  learned  that  the  ser 
vants  had  all  gone  to  bed,  and  Mr.  Mason  had  been  in 
his  room  the  whole  evening  with  a  headache. 

"Let  me  take  a  peep,"  said  a  new  voice;  and  a  some 
what  heavy  tread  came  nearer. 

But  Helen  drew  back,  and  the  would-be  observer 
could  get  no  satisfaction. 

At  length,  in  spite  of  an  imperative  "hush  !"  from 
within,  a  voice  called  somewhat  brokenly, 

"Who's  there?" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  II 

"I,   mum;  very  tired,  and  cold." 

' '  It's  a  woman, "  said  the  questioner. 

"There  may  be  a  man  with  her,"  came  the  quick 
answer;  "don't  let  her  in."  These  were  the  shrill 
tones  again. 

"Are  you  hungry?"  came  through  the  door  in  the 
pitying  accents  of  the  broken  voice. 

"Yes,   m'm,  awfully  hungry." 

"Are  you  a  tramp?"  tremulously. 

"I  never  have  been,  but  if  you  don't  let  me  in,  I'm 
afraid  I  shall  be." 

"Poor  thing!  How  well  her  voice  sounds.  I  pity 
her.  She  must  have  seen  better  days." 

"She  has  never  seen  worse,"  called  Helen. 

' '  I  shall  open  the  door  on  the  chain,  anyway, "  as 
serted  the  slightly  quavering  tones;  and,  in  spite  of  op 
position,  this  was  done. 

A  well-gloved  hand  immediately  thrust  into  the  space, 
a  delicate  face,  and  a  pair  of  laughing  eyes  visible  through 
the  opening,  betrayed  the  new-comer. 

' '  You  inhospitable  people  !  "  she  cried. 

She  was  welcomed  with  laughter  and  shouts  of  "Helen, 
you  poor  child  !  "  "You  saucy  girl !  " 

"Indeed,  I  have  seen  better  days,  and  nights  too," 
she  repeated  merrily. 

"I  thought  the  last  train  was  in  two  hours  ago;  we 


12  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

had  entirely  given  you  up,"  said  Mrs.  Mason  helping 
her  to  take  off  her  wrappings,  "and  none  of  us  heard 
the  carriage.  The  express  came  with  your  trunk  this 
afternoon,  so  we  knew  you  had  meant  well  by  us." 

Mrs.  Edgerly,  mindful  of  Helen's  declaration  that  she 
was  "awfully  hungry,"  disappeared,  returning  soon  with 
a  most  tempting  display  of  food.  Her  grand-daughter, 
Bertha  Edgerly,  from  her  easy  chair  watched  the  pro 
ceeding. 

Helen  went  to  bed  warmed  and  comforted.  She 
laughed  over  her  experience  as  a  tramp,  and  wondered 
whose  was  the  shrill  voice  she  had  heard  before  she 
gained  admittance;  but  it  was  long  in  revealing  itself  in 
the  well-modulated  tones  about  her. 

She  went  to  sleep  in  a  pleasant  reverie  of  mingled 
amusement  at  Mrs.  Barney,  and  recollection  of  her 
nephew's  thoughtfulness  for  their  comfort. 


CHAPTER    II. 

PERTH  A  EDGERLY  looked  across  the  breakfast- 
-LJ  table,  the  next  morning,  to  see  what  her  cousin 
was  like.  The  two  had  not  met  for  a  number  of  years, 
and  she  thought  Helen  very  much  improved. 

Nobody  had  a  pleasanter  way  of  taking  life  than  Bertha. 
She  fancied  herself  the  queen  of  a  tournament,  dispensing 
smiles  and  prizes  wherever  she  believed  they  were  merited. 
No  thought  that  her  prizes  might  be  worthless  and  her 
smiles  unheeded,  ever  came  to  her.  She  enjoyed  her 
exercise  of  criticism  and  award  in  the  perfect  security  of 
one  whose  judgment  and  position  are  of  unquestioned 
consequence.  Regarded  in  the  light  of  discipline  and 
progress,  such  mental  attitude  is  a  failure;  but  for  even, 
up-and-down  satisfaction  there  is  nothing  like  it. 

Helen  was  tall  and  graceful,  animated,  without  being 
exuberant  in  spirits;  but  Bertha  could  not  fully  decide  as 
to  her  face,  for  it  never  seemed  for  two  minutes  exactly 
the  same.  Some  bright  fancy,  like  sunshine,  lighted  it 


14  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

up,  or  serious  thought  made  it  grave.  Bertha  did  not 
tell  herself  that  when  she  had  looked  once  at  Helen  she 
felt  a  desire  to  look  again.  She  only  did  so. 

Helen  found  Mrs.  Mason  pretty,  much  prettier  than 
she  had  appeared  the  evening  before.  She  was  over 
thirty,  but  she  had  the  complexion  of  sixteen,  delicately 
tinted,  and  made  the  more  brilliant  by  her  dark  hair. 
Her  light  gray  eyes,  with  a  tinge  of  green  in  them, 
glanced  about  vivaciously  taking  note  of  everything,  and 
their  discoveries  were  invaluable  to  her  quick  wit.  She 
had  a  reputation  in  Lowton  for  both  beauty  and  clever 
ness.  If  her  bright  red  lips  were  a  trifle  thin,  they 
shaped  themselves  so  readily  to  the  utterance  of  arch  or 
courteous  phrases  that  they  were  only  beautiful  and  be 
witching,  like  everything  else  about  her.  Helen,  whose 
work  had  used  her  to  the  study  of  effect,  saw  that  Mrs. 
Mason  understood  it  well  in  her  own  person.  Kitty 
used  to  say,  laughingly,  though  not  in  jest,  that  one 
might  as  well  be  out  of  the  world  as  out  of  the  fashion, 
yet,  for  the  sake  of  fashion  she  never  wore  an  inharmo 
nious  color,  or  dressed  in  an  unbecoming  style.  Every 
body  agreed  that  she  was  a  charming  companion,  not 
talking  too  deeply  blue  to  be  amusing,  whatever  she 
might  know,  a  good  deal  of  erudition  was  put  down  to 
her  credit — and  an  object  to  delight  the  eye  of  poet  or 
artist;  altogether,  an  acquisition  to  Lowton  society. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WOKK.  15 

Bertha  was  short  and  inclined  to  stoutness.  Her  eyes 
and  hair  were  dark,  her  features  good,  and  a  share  of 
Kitty  Mason's  superabundant  spirit  would  have  made 
her  handsome.  But  lack  of  expression  in  her  face 
prevented  Helen  from  seeing  any  beauty  there. 

The  new-comer  soon  turned  from  these  two,  however, 
and  from  Mrs.  Edgerly's  pleasant  smile  of  greeting,  to 
look  curiously  at  Andrew  Mason,  the  fourth  and  last 
member  of  this  family,  with  whom  she  had  come  to 
spend  several  weeks.  Mrs.  Edgerly  was  her  grand 
father's  cousin.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mason  she  had  never  seen 
before.  She  studied  Andrew  with  something  more  than 
passing  curiosity.  That  face  would  go  down  in  her  note 
book,  the  secret  treasury  to  which  not  even  her  mother 
had  access,  and  from  which  she  drew  so  many  inspira 
tions;  but  in  what  character  would  it  be  ?  He  was  not 
handsome,  he  was  quite  bald,  and  the  hair  that  was  left 
him,  once  yellow-brown,  was  now  dulled  by  a  tinge  of 
gray;  his  features  were  rather  clumsily  molded;  he  was 
barely  medium  height,  and  stout;  his  blue  eyes  were 
half  closed,  as  if  it  were  too  much  trouble  to  open  them 
wide,  and  his  expression  was  one  of  indolent  good 
humor.  And  of  something  else.  Of  what  ?  She  could 
not  be  sure  yet. 

"Did  you  come  up  from  the  station  all  alone,  last 
night  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Edgerly. 


1 6  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  No,  a  lady  and  gentleman  were  in  the  carriage  with 
me." 

' '  How  nice  !  "  cried  Bertha.  ' '  I  wonder  who  they 
were. " 

' '  Oh,  some  strangers,  very  likely, "  answered  Kitty  be 
fore  Helen  had  time  to  speak,  and  that  young  lady  find 
ing  herself  with  nothing  to  say,  wisely  said  nothing. 

' '  I  should  like  to  know  who  they  were,  repeated  Ber 
tha.  ' '  Describe  them,  Helen. " 

Helen  did  so.  But  either  ideas  differed,  or  there  was 
some  other  cause  of  bewilderment. 

"You  said  the  lady  came  from  Westville?"  questioned 
Kitty  Mason,  all  adrift. 

"So  she  told  me." 

Up  and  down  the  snow-encumbered  streets  of  Lowton 
labored  the  baffled  curiosity  of  the  ladies. 

Helen  was  buttering  her  roll,  with  the  innocent  uncon 
cern  of  one  who  sees  no  way  out  of  her  neighbors'  diffi 
culties,  when  Mr.  Mason,  who  had  not  taken  part  in  the 
discussion,  because,  as  she  saw,  he  was  devoting  all  his 
attention  to  breakfast,  suddenly  drawled  out: 

' '  You   know  who  they  are,   Miss  Bell,   don't  you  ? " 

The  three  ladies  turned  first  to  him  and  then  to  her, 
expectantly. 

"Yes,"  she  answered.  "They  were  Mrs.  Barney,  and 
Mr.  H olden. " 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  17 

' '  Why  didn't  you  tell  us,  then  ?  "  cried  her  hostess,  half 
offended. 

"I  was  only  waiting  to  be  asked,"  said  the  girl,  and  her 
joyous  laugh, — so  like  her  father's — won  Mrs.  Edgerly's 
forgiveness  directly. 

Bertha  sat  silent  a  moment.     Then  she  exclaimed: 

"  Putting  last  night  and  this  morning  together,  Helen, 
I  do  believe  you're  a  tease." 

Mrs.  Mason  said  nothing.  The  flash  in  her  eyes  made 
them  colorless,  but  she  dropped  them  directly,  and  after 
an  instant's  fingering  of  her  napkin-ring,  went  on  with  her 
breakfast. 

"Holden,"  repeated  Mr.  Mason  slowly,  "he's  an  odd 
stick — good  fellow,  though,  and  made  of  money." 

"If  you  like,  Miss  Bell,"  said  Kitty  soon  after,  " I  will 
take  you  over  the  house  this  morning.  It's  a  poor  amuse 
ment,  to  be  sure,  but  it  will  make  you  feel  more  at  home, 
and  I  may  be  able  to  show  you  a  few  interesting  things. 
At  least,  it's  the  best  we  can  do  to-day,  for  it  is  too  drifted 
and  blustering  to  think  of  going  out '' 

"Thank  you,   I  should  like  it  very  much." 

Kitty  was  sure  she  should  enjoy  her  office  of  cicerone. 
The  girl  was  used  to  simplicity  in  her  own  home,  and  it 
would  be  pleasant  to  see  her  genuine  admiration  of  this 
house,  whose  luxuries  she  was  to  share  for  a  time.  It 
was  in  the  full  consciousness  that  it  was  her  own  home 


1 8  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

she  was  about  to  exhibit,  that,  as  at  her  summons  Helen 
came  up  the  stairs,  Kitty  stood  in  the  hall  with  the  light 
from  a  great  window  shining  down  upon  her,  and  the 
folds  of  her  rich  dress  sweeping  out  behind  her. 

It  is  of  no  use  to  try  to  banish  trains  entirely,  for 
they  supply  a  need  in  nature  and  will  not  be  done  away 
with.  The  people  who  cannot  carry  sufficient  dignity 
in  their  heads  ought  to  make  up  the  deficiency  by  the 
sweep  of  rich  robes  behind  them;  for  a  train  suggests 
pages,  pages  rank  and  prerogative,  and  so  an  intoxi 
cating  dream  of  position  rises  to  the  brain  and  fills  it, 
entirely  overpowering  any  latent  consciousness  of  a  need 
for  humility.  Trains  are  an  invention  to  keep  up  the 
balance  of  power,  and  the  many  wear  them  for  the  sake 
of  the  few. 

Kitty  then  stood  in  gracious  state  and  waited  for 
Helen's  approach,  noticing  that  the  girl  walked  very 
finely. 

The  hostess  moved  about  with  an  air  of  possession, 
explaining  that  four  years  ago  Mrs.  Edgerly,  at  the 
death  of  her  only  son,  had  invited  Andrew,  her  nephew, 
to  make  his  home  here  for  the  remainder  of  her  life. 

"It  was  hard  to  leave  our  own  beautiful  home," 
she  continued,  "but,  of  course,  Aunt  Bertha's  wishes 
could  not  be  disregarded,  and  she  urged  us  so  strongly 
to  come." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  19 

Helen  wondered  if  their  "own  beautiful  home"  had 
been  equally  luxurious,  but  she  was  ashamed  of  the 
thought. 

Although  the  girl  keenly  enjoyed  the  very  handsome 
rooms  and  the  artistic  treasures  they  held,  she  was  not 
in  the  least  impressed  by  the  grandeur,  and  something 
was  wanting  to  Kitty's  pleasure  in  the  promenade. 

Mr.  Jack  Holden,  rising  earlier  than  usual  that  morn 
ing,  found,  when  he  went  into  his  library,  that  the  par 
lor-maid  was  still  at  work  there.  He  sat  down  before 
the  blazing  wood  fire  and  opened  the  newspaper,  for 
he  had  not  touched  it  the  previous  evening. 

"Were  there  coals  enough  here  to  kindle  with  this 
morning  ?  "  he  asked  abruptly. 

' '  Yes,  sir,  plenty, "  answered  the  house-maid,  stopping 
in  her  dusting  to  stare  at  him. 

"Shure,  what  should  he  care  for?"  she  said  later, 
repeating  his  question  to  the  cook,  "he  wouldn't  be 
after  saving  a  few  chips,  would  he,  and  he  so  many?" 

"It's  no  matter,"  Holden  explained  hastily,  seeing 
her  surprise;  "I  was  sitting  here  quite  late  last  night, 
and  I  only  wondered  if  the  fire  would  keep. " 

' '  Yes,  sir,  it  did. " 

A  thrill  passed  through  Holden,  at  which  he  smiled 
in  scorn.  He  had  wondered,  as  he  went  to  bed,  whether 
the  fancies  of  that  evening  would  die  out  before  the 


20  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

morning,  like  the  coals  he  buried  in  the  ashes;  and 
these  had  lived  and  glowed,  and  wanted  but  fresh  fuel 
to  flame  up  more  hotly  than  ever. 

"It's  nothing,"  he  repeated,  "it's  of  no  consequence." 
And  the  girl  finished  her  dusting. 

After  breakfast  he  walked  down  town  to  get  the  mail 
and  see  what  was  going  on  there.  He  took  the  way 
through  Cedar  Street,  although  the  business  part  of  the 
town  was  better  cleared.  He  wanted  a  boyish  struggle 
with  the  snow-drifts,  for  it  seemed  to  him,  that  morning, 
as  if  he  must  have  something  to  conquer.  This  was 
just  what  he  had  been  needing  all  his  life. 

Besides,  Mrs.  Edgerly  lived  in  Cedar  Street,  and  he 
might  get  a  glimpse  of  her  young  guest,  to  whom  his 
aunt  had  taken  so  great  a  fancy.  It  was  odd  that  she 
too,  had  suggested  his  calling  that  morning.  But  he 
did  not  care  to  do  it  The  lady  was  a  stranger,  he 
recollected,  and  last  night's  impressions  should  wear 
away,  at  least  somewhat  if  not  altogether,  before  he 
met  her  again.  He  might  get  a  glimpse  of  her  at  the 
window,  though,  as  he  passed  the  house,  and  delight 
Mrs.  Barney  with  an  account  of  how  she  was  looking 
and  what  she  was  doing. 

How  would  she  look  ? 

Not. in  the  cold  daylight  as  she  had  done  in  memory 
the  evening  before,  when  he  sat  for  hours  by  his  library 


A    LAZY   MAN>S    WORK.  li 

fire  thinking  of  her,  recalling  her  tones,  the  strength 
of  her  face,  its  purity,  its  play  of  thought,  its  mirthful- 
ness,  its  capabilities  of  feeling,  although  nothing  had 
called  for  deep  emotion  in  the  time  he  had  spent  with 
her.  He  had  imagined  her  moving  about  the  room 
with  simple  dignity,  sitting  in  the  chair  opposite  his 
before  the  fire — he  winced  as  he  remembered  that  last 
night  he  had  drawn  it  up  nearer  to  fill  out  the  fancy. 
He  had  pictured  her  presence  everywhere  about  the 
house,  and  with  the  thought  of  her,  here  in  his  home 
and  hers,  the  place  grew  full  of  a  new  fascination.  Mrs. 
Barney  had  often  told  him  he  ought  to  marry,  that  his 
beautiful  house  needed  a  mistress.  But  it  was  not  that, 
it  was  he  himself,  as  he  sat  there  alone  with  his  life  in 
the  silent  hours  of  introspection,  who  needed  Helen 
Bell. 

But  Jack  Holden  was  thirty-four,  old  enough  to  have 
learned  a  little  prudence,  he  told  himself,  in  the  midst 
of  these  dreams,  springing  up  with  determination,  and 
going  to  bed  to  sleep  off  his  folly.  He  had  covered  it 
with  the  ashes  of  suspicion  and  caution,  and  left  it  to 
die  a  natural  death.  Had  it  died,  or  was  it  like  the 
coals  he  had  compared  to  it? 

But  he  was  not  going  to  call  anywhere  this  morning; 
prudence  itself  could  not  forbid  a  glimpse  at  a  window. 

Fate  did,   however,   for   Holden,   like  many  a  better 


22  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

man,  suffered  from  being  in  advance  of  his  time.  Helen 
had  not  yet  returned  to  the  sitting-room  from  her  tour 
of  inspection,  and  every  window  he  glanced  at  in  his 
slow  passing-by,  met  him  blankly  with  indifference  to 
a  curiosity  too  timorous  to  give  itself  a  name. 

Mrs.  Barney  did  not  find  the  first  week  of  her  visit 
in  Lowton  very  interesting.  She  would  not  have  her 
nephew  know  this  for  the  world,  so,  with  her  usual  re 
ticence,  she  managed  to  tell  him.  She  said  he  seemed 
dull,  poor  fellow,  and  decided  that  he  did  not  have 
enough  society.  It  was  of  no  use  to  assure  her  to  the 
contrary,  she  persisted  that  she  knew  better.  She  thought 
of  something  she  was  sure  would  be  good  for  him,  but 
he  might  not  agree  with  her,  and  she  must  use  skill  in 
carrying  out  her  plans. 

Mrs.  Barney  prided  herself  on  her  tactics.  She  pre 
mised  that  all  men  must  be  managed,  even  Jack,  ob 
liging  as  he  was;  for  if  he  once  refused  any  request 
she  made,  he  was  ' '  a  very  Mede  and  Persian, "  she 
told  him. 

She  felt  herself  all  the  greater  diplomat  that  she  be 
lieved  Jack  considered  her  a  model  of  simplicity;  and 
so  he  did. 

Once  he  made  her  a  present  of  some  very  handsome 
ostrich  plumes  with  the  assurance  that  they  exactly  suited 
her.  She  wore  them  with  complacent  pride,  and  never 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  23 

a  suspicion  that  they  nodded  assent  to  the  saucy  nephew's 
comparison  of  her  concealment  of  secrets  with  that  wise 
fowl's  way  of  hiding  himself. 

The  second  week,  however,  promised  better  things. 
Holden  came  into  the  library  one  morning  with  an 
eager  face. 

' '  You've  got  an  idea  in  your  head,  Jack ! "  she  ex 
claimed. 

"My  dear  aunt,  I'm  sure  I  hope  so,"  he  laughed. 
"But  you  announce  it  as  if  the  thing  were  as  rare  as 
the  advent  of  a  new  star.  Not  complimentary." 

"But  I  haven't  seen  you  look  so  young  nor  so  hand 
some  for  a  long  time.  Do  tell  me  what  it  is." 

Jack  had  no  time  now,  he  promised  to  tell  her  before 
long,  and  sped  off  in  his  light  sleigh  as  soon  as  his  man 
drove  up  to  the  door. 

A  few  minutes  later,  Bertha  came  into  Helen's  room 
as  she  sat  writing. 

" Only  think, "  she  began,  "how  nice!  Mr.  Holden 
is  down-stairs,  and  has  been  inviting  us  to  go  on  a  sleigh 
ing  party  to-night,  if  we  have  no  engagement,  because 
the  moon  fulls,  and  it  is  splendid  weather.  But  he  told 
Cousin  Andrew  he  would  put  it  off  rather  than  have  us 
fail  him.  I  never  knew  he  was  so  kind,  or  thought  so 
much  of  Andrew — or  any  of  us." 

Standing  before  the  glass  she  put  up  her  hands  and 


24  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

rearranged  the  soft  waves  of  her  hair  upon  her  fore 
head  as  she  spoke,  and  smiled  back  at  her  reflection 
there. 

' '  Why  don't  you  say  you're  glad,  Helen  ?  "  she  cried. 
"  It's  so  nice  to  have  it  happen  while  you're  here.  And, 
oh,  you  must  stop  your  scribbling,  and  come  down-stairs 
with  me;  Mr.  Holden  asked  for  you. " 

' '  Asked  for  me  ? "  said  the  other,  not  changing  her 
attitude,  but  holding  her  pen  suspended  over  the  paper. 

"Yes;  he  said,  'The  young  lady  that  came  in  the 
storm;'  he  hoped  that  she  had  not  taken  cold,  and  that 
she  was  still  here  to  be  of  the  party.  Wasn't  it  good 
in  him,  when  he'd  only  seen  you  once  ? " 

"Very." 

"But  aren't  you  coming  down?"  as  Helen  went  on 
with  her  writing.  ' '  Grandma  sent  me  to  ask  you. " 

"Yes,  I  will,  as  soon  as  I  have  finished  this  letter.  I 
have  only  a  few  more  lines  to  write. " 

Mr.  Holden  caught  sight  of  Helen's  expression  the 
moment  she  appeared  in  the  doorway.  He  saw  that  her 
"  half-smiling  preoccupation  came  from  the  train  of  thought 
called  up  by  the  letter  that  Bertha  had  said  she  was  fin 
ishing.  She  must  have  been  very  deeply  interested  in 
her  correspondent.  He  came  forward,  holding  out  his 
hand  with  the  air  of  a  friend  of  the  family. 

"I  hope  Miss  Bell  has  not  so  far  forgotten  her  fellow- 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  25 

traveler  as  to  need  his  introduction  to  her  a  second  time," 
he  said  cordially,  as  Andrew  uttered  his  name. 

"I  hope  Miss  Bell  is  not  so  ungrateful  as  to  have  for 
gotten  either  of  two  kind  people  who  would  insist  upon 
seeing  her  safe  through  the  snow-drifts  to  a  hospitable 
door,"  said  Helen.  "How  is  Mrs.  Barney?" 

When  he  had  answered,  Bertha  said  she  should  call 
upon  the  lady  very  soon,  with  her  friend. 

Jack  was  sure  his  aunt  would  be  delighted,  and  her 
anticipated  pleasure  was  reflected  in  his  face. 

"Shall  we  see  her  to-night?"  asked  Helen  as  they 
spoke  of  the  sleighing  party. 

He  turned  to  the  questioner  at  once. 

' '  I  am  afraid  not.  She  never  gets  into  a  sleigh  when 
she  can  help  it." 

' '  Then  she  was  all  the  more  kind  to  me, "  answered 
Helen. 

Did  her  listener's  eyes  have  a  very  little  reproach  in 
them  as  he  looked  at  her  ?  He  said  nothing. 

The  evening  was  as  fine  as  it  had  promised  to  be,  and 
four  people  were  filled  with  pleasant  anticipations  as 
Holden's  double  sleigh  drew  up  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's  door. 
Mrs.  Mason  was  not  of  the  party,  being  out  of  town  for 
a  few  days. 

' '  Be  sure  to  keep  Andrew  laughing,  so  he'll  forget 
Kitty's  away,"  said  Bertha  to  Helen,  as  the  three  stood  on 


26  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK, 

the  doorsteps,  while  Holden  was  throwing  back  the  sleigh 
robes. 

But  it  was  Bertha  herself  who  needed  the  admonition, 
for  when  he  turned  and  held  out  his  hand  it  was  to  place 
Helen  on  the  front  seat,  as  he  asked  in  a  low  tone: 

"You  will  sit  here?" 

Bertha  need  not  have  walked  about  the  hall  the  last 
quarter  of  an  hour  with  all  her  heavy  wraps  on.  She 
would  have  had  the  back  seat  just  as  surely  if  Mr.  Holden 
had  waited  for  her. 

"I  want  your  cousin  to  have  the  best  possible  view 
of  the  country,"  he  explained  to  Bertha  as  they  drove  off. 

"Ye-es,  ye-es,"  said  Andrew.  "That's  right.  Glad 
you  do.  Miss  Bell  is  an  artist.  She'll  appreciate  it." 

Holden  talked  a  good  deal  to  his  companion.  He 
was  trying  to  bring  the  same  arch  expression  into  her 
face  that  he  had  seen  there  the  evening  of  the  snow 
storm,  when  once,  after  Mrs.  Barney  had  said  a  most 
amusing  thing,  her  eyes  had  met  his  with  irrepressible 
fun  in  them.  She  had,  indeed,  immediately  recollected 
herself  and  looked  away,  coloring  deeply.  He  wanted  to 
see  that  bright  look  again,  color  and  all. 

The  clear  air  was  exhilarating.  The  fields  along  the 
roadside  glistened  in  the  brilliant  moonlight,  and  the 
shadows  of  the  leafless  trees  fell  upon  them  in  black  lines. 
The  sleigh  sometimes  glided  past  thinly  wooded  tracts 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  27 

where  heavy  masses  of  pine-trees  stood  out  against  the 
sky  and  threw  their  dense  shadows  on  the  snow. 

"This  is  the  world  done  in  charcoal  sketches,"  said 
Helen  as  they  came  out  of  one  of  these  spaces  into  the 
clear  moonlight  again.  "It  is  very  fine,  but  it  doesn't 
make  one  forget  to  be  grateful  for  color." 

She  looked  up  to  Mr.    Holden  for  assent. 

The  swift  motion,  the  companionship,  and  the  gayety 
of  greetings  exchanged  with  some  of  the  party  they  had 
passed  on  the  road,  had  given  her  face  a  brightness 
which  justified  the  gazer's  comparison  of  it  to  that  very 
ideal  of  life  and  color  for  which  she  was  claiming  admi 
ration. 

"No;  far  from  it,"  he  said  in  a  low  tone,  and  with  a 
glance  and  manner  that  made  her  feel  herself  compre 
hended  in  the  answer. 

But  before  her  surprise  could  change  to  embarrassment, 
he  turned  to  Mason  and  was  speaking  to  him  about 
some  incident  of  the  day  before. 

The  company  which  assembled  that  evening  in  a  town 
a  dozen  miles  away,  was  chosen  from  the  best  in  Lowton. 
Holden  was  an  admirable  host,  he  moved  here  and  there 
among  his  guests,  with  ready  skill  bringing  together  con 
genial  people  and  introducing  pleasant  subjects  of  conver 
sation.  The  supper  left  nothing  to  be  desired,  except 
a  good  digestion,  if  one  had  the  misfortune  to  be  without 


28  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

it.     The  evening  was  a  social  success;  no  one's  pleasure 
had  been  overlooked. 

Yet,  as  Helen  thought  it  all  over  in  her  room  in  the 
small  hours,  she  had  an  intuition  that  it  was  her  pleas 
ure  which  had  been  especially  considered.  But  this  had 
been  done  with  such  delicacy  that  she  could  offer  no 
proof  of  it,  even  to  herself.  She  only  felt  it  was  so. 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE  day  after  the  sleigh-ride  Mrs.  Barney  sailed  ma 
jestically  into  the  breakfast-room,  and,  with  a  very 
dignified  "good  morning,"  seated  herself  at  the  table  in 
ominous  silence. 

"Another  beautiful  day,  Aunt  Delia." 

"Very." 

A  pause. 

"Allow  me  to  send  you  a  little  of  this  steak;  it's  un 
usually  tender." 

"No,   I  thank  you." 

"I'm  sorry.     Have  some  omelet,  then." 

"Not  any,  thank  you." 

' '  Why,  what  will  you  take  ?  " 

' '  I  have  all  I  need,   thank  you. " 

And  Mrs.  Barney,  refusing  toast  and  rolls,  helped 
herself  with  a  martyr-like  air  to  a  slice  of  cold  bread. 

Jack  shot  a  half-amused,  half-provoked  glance  at  his 
house-keeper,  who  smiled  comprehendingly,  and  then 


30  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

begged  Mrs.  Barney  to  tell  her  if  there  was  not  some 
thing  she  would  like. 

But  Mrs.  Barney  would  "cause  trouble  to  no.  one." 
She  went  on  with  her  meager  breakfast  in  a  silence 
broken  only  when  a  direct  question  assailed  her. 

Jack  understood  it  all. 

After  his  usual  sally  down  town  he  came  into  the 
library,  where  his  aunt  was  seated  before  the  open  fire 
with  her  fancy  knitting.  "If  'twere  done,  'twere  well 
'twere  done  quickly." 

"No  letters  for  you  this  morning,"  he  began. 

"No,  I  suppose  not,"  plaintively.  "I've  got  to  be 
an  old  lady.  When  people  go  they  don't  want  me,  and 
when  I  go  they  don't  remember  me." 

"Six  epistles  yesterday,  Aunt  Delia." 

A  flash  of  triumph  in  the  brown  eyes,  instantly  sub 
dued  to  sadness  again. 

"They  only  all  happened  to  come  together,"  she 
answered.  "But  you'll  find  how  it  is;  you'll  be  one, 
jtoo,  some  of  these  days." 

"An  old  lady,  you  mean?" 

The  irrepressible  ripple  that  threatened  to  draw  out 
Mrs.  Barney's  lips  into  a  smile  immediately  dissappeared, 
followed  by  a  gentle  sigh. 

"Yes,  you'll  be  old  to,"  she  persisted,  "and,  then, 
perhaps  you'll  be  laughed  at  for  not  being  elegant 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  31 

enough.     Of  course,    you   didn't   care   to   show   me   tc 
your  friends." 

"But,  my  dear  aunt,"  began  Jack.  In  spite  of  his 
general  comprehension  of  her,  he  was  sometimes  puzzled 
to  know  if  her  feelings  were  really  hurt,  or  she  were 
feigning  remarkably  well.  Mrs.  Barney  herself  was  oc 
casionally  a  little  puzzled  as  to  the  same  point,  for  her 
acting,  being  only  exaggerated  nature,  now  and  then 
went  somewhat  beyond  her  control.  But  at  such  times 
she  gave  her  feelings  the  benefit  of  the  doubt.  This 
morning  she  went  on: 

"Yes,  it's  'my  dear  aunt'  here,  alone;  but  you  take 
care  not  to  need  to  say  it  anywhere  else." 

' '  How  can  you  be  so  absurd  ?  I  should  be  only  too 
glad  to  take  you  anywhere,  and  show  you  to  any  of  my 
friends. " 

The  lady  shook  her  head  with  melancholy  emphasis. 

"Try  me,"  cried  Holden  afraid  he  had  really  offended 
her.  ' '  I'll  do  anything  to  make  your  visit  pleasant. " 

She  had  him  at  last.  Her  eyes  shone.  She  reached 
up  as  he  stood  beside  her,  and  laid  a  hand  on  his  coat 
sleeve. 

"Then,  Jack,  we'll  give  a  grand  party." 

"Thunder!  Why,  that  won't  do.  I've  given  one 
last  night.  I  shall  lose  my  reputation  for  originality. 
Think  of  something  better." 


32  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"I  can't  think  of  anything  half  so  good.  And  you 
know  you  promised." 

Mrs.  Barney  had  killed  two  birds  with  one  stone,  grati 
fied  an  old  longing,  and  punished  her  nephew  for  getting 
up  a  sleigh-ride,  an  amusement  in  which  he  knew  she 
could  not  join. 

But  the  ride  had  compensated  a  thousand  times  for 
any  infliction;  and  when  he  came  to  think  of  it,  the 
party  just  at  this  time  was  not  a  bad  plan. 

"John  Rathston  Holden,  what  do  you  suppose  you 
must  do  when  you  are  going  to  give  a  grand  party  ? " 

This  was  a  few  days  before  the  event  Mrs.  Barney 
and  her  nephew  were  standing  in  the  upstairs  sitting- 
room  which  Jack  called  his  snuggery. 

"I  have  done  everything  a  poor  mortal  could,  already." 

"Give  a  grand  party,"  repeated  this  inexorable  gen- 
eral-in-chief,  "and  not  refurnish  this  room  ?  Impossible. 
Why,  I  want  it  for  a  ladies'  dressing-room.  Of  course 
you  must." 

' '  Let  me  see, "  she  added  going  back  to  her  interrupted 
studies  of  effect,  "which  would  do  better  for  the  carpet 
and  window-hangings,  wood-color  or  scarlet  ?  The  walls 
will  go  with  either,  they  look  quite  well,  though  you  have 
smoked  them  up  thoroughly.  Wood-color  is  very  gen 
teel;  but  then  red  lights  up  superbly,  and  cardinal  is  all 
the  rage  now." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  33 

"  I  will  tell  you." 

Mrs.  Barney  looked  at  her  nephew,  deliberating  whether 
his  taste  were  good  enough  to  allow  him  a  voice  in  his 
own  house. 

' '  Well,  which  ?  "  she  asked. 

"Neither." 

"You  can't  do  better,  Jack.  What  color  would  you 
like,  then  ? " 

"The  color  we  have  now." 

The  lady  stared  at  him  in  such  a  manner  that,  had 
he  not  been  stout-hearted,  he  must  have  quailed. 

' '  The  same  over  again  ?  "  she  asked  faintly,  struggling 
against  an  overmastering  suspicion. 

"No,  the  same,  without  being  over  again.  I  have  let 
you  rearrange  every  other  room  in  the  house,  Aunt  Delia, 
and  almost  refurnish  a  number  of  them.  It  seems  to 
me  that  not  a  place  from  attic  to  cellar  has  a  home  look 
but  this  room;  and  here  I  take  my  stand.  If  you  don't 
like  its  appearance,  shut  it  up,  and  use  the  others  that 
you  have  been,  as  you  say,  remodeling." 

"  That  will  never  do;  this  must  be  thrown  open.  If 
you  want  your  friends  to  (see  you  shabby  in  your  own. 
house,  leave  it,  of  course.  That  elegant  Miss  Bell,  too. 
What  will  she  think  of  that  carpet  ?  I  wonder  how  you 
came  to  get  such  a  staring  thing,  it  doesn't  seem  an  atom 
like  you." 


34  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Do  you  think  the  carpet  ugly?" 

Mrs.   Barney's  face  lighted. 

"Hideous,"  she  exclaimed  eagerly,  "and  it's  been 
down  a  long  time." 

' '  No,  to  the  first  assertion,  though  I  have  seen  hand 
somer.  " 

"What  made  you  choose  it?" 

' '  I  did  not  exactly  choose  it.  I  got  it  at  second 
hand." 

"Second-hand  carpets!  Jack  Holden,  nobody  but 
yourself  would  ever  have  made  me  believe  you  had  come 
to  that.  Perhaps,"  scornfully,  "the  rest  of  the  things 
here  are  second-hand,  too  ? " 

"Some  of  them.  That's  the  reason  I  am  not  willing 
to  change  them,  though  I  really  don't  like  to  say  'no' 
to  you  when  you  are  so  in  earnest  about  it." 

' '  Then  you  don't  really  mean  to  say  '  no '  to 
me  ? " 

Her  vivacity  had  suddenly  returned. 

"I  do,  though;  because  I  shall  not  give  them  up  until 
they're  quite  worn  out  They  used  to  belong  to  Ned 
Winters,  poor  fellow,  in  his  prosperous  days;  but  he 
had  no  head  for  business,  and  a  few  years  ago  he  smashed 
up  completely.  You  remember,  perhaps,  he  went  out 
West,  and  died  there  of  consumption  last  fall.  He  hud 
the  prettiest  little  wife,  and  two  children.  I  have  had 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  35 

a  good  many  pleasant  times  in  his  house  with  these  very 
things  about  me.  I  took  them  when  he  moved." 

' '  You  bought  them  at  auction,   then  ?  " 

' '  Oh,  no,  they  wouldn't  have  brought  anything  that 
way. " 

Holden  stopped.  He  had  not  meant  to  give  his 
reasons. 

"I  recollect,"  said  Mrs.  Barney,  "hearing  Will  War 
ren  say  you  paid  two  hundred  dollars  once  for  a  secre 
tary  that  wasn't  worth  fifty.  I  suppose  this  was  the  way 
of  it,  for  I  know  you  pride  yourself  on  knowing  the 
value  of  things." 

"Warren  was  mistaken,"  said  Jack,  hastily.  "It  is 
worth  to  me  quite  all  I  gave.  The  arrangement  of  the 
compartments  is  the  most  convenient  I  have  ever  seen. " 

Mrs.  Barney  dropped  into  a  chair,  and  let  her  eyes 
rove  about  the  room  thoughtfully  a  few  moments. 

"I  remember,  now,  hearing  how  much  you  did  for 
them  all,"  she  said.  "You're  a  good  fellow,  Jack. 
What  a  pity  you  won't  marry;  you  would  make  such  a 
kind  husband.  And  this  nice  house,  too.  I'm  so 
sorry,"  she  added  as  he  answered  nothing,  "and  so  are 
your  friends,  indignant  with  that  girl." 

"What  girl?" 

Holden  came  and  stood  before  her. 

"Why,  you  know,  that  Miss — why,  Jack,  don't  look 


36  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

like  that;  I  didn't  mean  to  annoy  you.  I  only  men 
tioned  what  everybody  knows." 

"What  is  it  everybody  knows?" 

' '  About  that — how  heart-broken  you  were  when  Rose 
Benton  married,  just  after  you  went  off  to  Europe;  of 
course,  we  all  thought  it  would  be  you,  knowing  you 
were  so  fond  of  her,  and  how  long  she  had  encouraged 
you.  There,  you're  angry;  but  we  have  all  pitied  you 
so  much,  you  ought  not  to  be." 

Jack  burst  out  laughing;  Mrs.  Barney  saw  it  was  to 
cover  his  emotion. 

' '  Rosie  Benton  !  Why,  I  knew  of  her  engagement 
before  anybody  in  her  own  family  did;  I  used  to  be 
postman  between  her  and  Fred  until  her  father  came 
round.  She  found  people's  suppositions  about  us  very 
convenient,  and  she  knew  I  didn't  care.  We  used  to 
laugh  about  them." 

' '  Oh ! "  said  Mrs.  Barney  with  an  odd  mixture  of 
satisfaction  and  disappointment  in  her  tones. 

Her  nephew  laughed  again. 

"Melancholy  waste  of  sentiment,  Aunt  Delia.  I'm 
sorry  I  couldn't  have  spared  it  to  you." 

' '  Then,  Jack,  if  that's  the  case,  surely  you  will,  some 
time — " 

But  with  her  nephew's  eyes  looking  sternly  into  hers, 
it  was  not  so  easy  to  finish. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  37 

"I  will  go  down  town  now,"  he  said;  "you  have  given 
me  commissions  enough  to  keep  me  until  dinner-time." 

But  although  Jack  had  chosen  to  look  stern,  his  pulse- 
beats,  long  after  he  left  his  aunt,  were  quickened  by  her 
prediction. 

On  the  night  of  the  party,  when  Helen  Bell  came 
down-stairs  she  found  Mr.  Mason  in  his  easy  chair  by 
the  fire.  The  others  were  not  ready. 

He  laid  down  his  paper,  and  surveyed  her  with  a  smile 
of  satisfaction.  He  had  been  so  cordial  in  his  manner 
to  her  from  the  first  that  she  felt  as  if  she  had  known 
him  all  her  life. 

"Turn  round  slowly,  and  let  me  see  the  effect,"  he 
said  as  she  stood  beside  the  table  opening  a  club-book 
brought  in  since  she  had  gone  to  dress.  ' '  Ye-es — you 
look  very  nice  indeed,  Miss  Helen." 

"Don't  you  like  this?"  she  asked,  coming  up  to  him 
and  holding  out  a  black  fan  on  which  she  had  painted 
heads  of  wheat.  Andrew  praised  its  beauty. 

"Sit  down,"  he  said  after  this,  "and  let  us  talk  it 
over. " 

"Talk  what  over?" 

' '  The  party  we're  going  to.  If  the  others  look  as 
well  as  you  do,  I  shall  be  a  fortunate  escort." 

"Kitty  is  just  lovely,  she  called  me  in  as  I  went  by. 
I'm  glad  you  like  my  dress.  It  is  Mrs.  Edgerly's  kind- 


38  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

ness;  she  would  insist  upon  getting  it  for  me.  I  couldn't 
have  done  all  this  myself.  But  I  am  afraid,  Mr.  Mason, 
I  ought  not  to  have  allowed  it.  It  was  my  vanity." 

"I  don't  think  so,  and  Aunt  Bertha  couldn't  have 
done  a  more  sensible  thing.  Miss  Helen,  '  take  the 
goods  the  gods  bestow;'  and  I  think,"  he  added  with 
deliberation,  "they  have  not  come  to  the  end  of  their 
gifts  yet.  They  are  only  beginning  to  open  their  hands 
above  you." 

"Thank  you  for  such  a  prophecy,"  cried  Helen  rising 
suddenly,  as  if  the  rich  color  that  had  come  into  her  face 
would  vanish  with  the  movement  like  some  reflection 
from  a  prism.  But  it  lingered,  being  no  reflection  but 
the  hue  of  joyful  consciousness. 

' '  I  did  not  show  you  my  bracelets, "  she  added  hastily, 
reaching  out  her  arm  to  the  light.  ' '  They  are  the  only 
really  fine  things  which  have  come  down  to  me,  'all 
that  is  left,  left  of  six  hundred. ' " 

"Helen,"  called  a  plaintive  voice  from  the  stairs, 
"please  come  here." 

As  Helen  reached  the  door,  Kitty  came  in  with  a  frown 
upon  her  fair  face. 

"That  girl  won't  be  ready  to-night.  Aunt  Bertha 
wants  you  to  see  if  you  can  do  anything  with  her, 
Helen." 

There  was  certainly  some  reason  for  Kitty's  annoyance. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  39 

Bertha  sat  in  a  low  rocking-chair,  swaying  herself  back 
and  forth  with  a  slow  monotony  that  was  exasperating 
to  one  in  haste.  Kitty's  sarcasms  and  Mrs.  Edgerly's  ex 
postulations  had  been  fruitless. 

"O,  Helen,"  she  cried,  "you'll  help  me  now,  you 
are  an  artist.  They've  been  teasing  me  to  death :  '  hurry, 
hurry,  hurry,'  for  the  last  hour." 

' '  But  it  is  time  to  start,   Bertha. " 

' '  There  !  You  are  going  to  be  just  as  bad  as  the 
others.  How  can  I  put  on  my  dress  until  I  know  what 
I'm  going  to  wear?  And  I  can't  decide  whether  my 
black  lace  or  my  white  lace  overdress  would  suit  this 
color  best.  They  have  both  told  me  first  one  and  then 
the  other,  and  I  didn't  like  either.  I've  got  confused, 
you  see,  and  naturally  I  want  to  look  as  well  as  I  can. 
You  needn't  be  troubled,"  she  added,  "  I'm  awfully  quick 
when  I  begin." 

"How  can  you  possibly  tell,  unless  you  put  it  on?" 
said  Helen.  "Stand  up,  please,  and  let  me  try." 

As  she  spoke  she  took  the  dress  from  the  bed,  and 
before  Bertha  sufficiently  recovered  from  her  surprise  to 
lay  hold  of  any  objection,  the  vexed  question  was  al 
ready  settled,  for  Helen,  trying  each  with  a  touch,  had 
declared,  and  arrayed  her  in  the  chosen  one. 

' '  There,  that's  the  good  of  being  an  artist, "  said  Bertha 
coming  down-stairs  in  high  good  humor.  "She  knew 


40  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

what  I  wanted  directly.  This  is  the  one  I  liked  best 
myself,  Helen;  I  should  have  decided  upon  it  if  you  had 
not  come  up. " 

' '  When  ?  "  asked  Kitty.  ' '  I  never  knew  you  ready 
to  go  anywhere  yet" 

"We  have,  once,"  said  Andrew  aside  to  Helen,  who 
recalled  the  night  of  the  sleigh-ride  with  a  smile,  and 
having  begun  to  think  of  it,  remembered  so  many  things 
about  it,  and  in  some  sort  connected  with  it,  that  they 
were  not  quite  all  put  away  by  the  time  she  reached  Mr. 
Holden's  house. 

The  party  was  even  a  greater  success  than  the  sleigh- 
ride,  since  there  were  so  many  more  to  enjoy  it.  Mrs. 
Barney  was  an  excellent  hostess,  and  was  in  such  a  state 
of  inward  felicity  that  Jack,  watching  her  with  secret 
amusement,  felt  rewarded  for  his  efforts.  She  showed 
Helen  a  great  deal  of  attention.  She  had  a  feeling  of 
satisfaction  and  of  a  certain  right  of  possession  in  the 
girl,  as  if  she  had  drawn  her  out  of  a  snow-bank  and 
presented  her  in  Lowton. 

' '  I  had  no  idea, "  said  Bertha  on  the  homeward  drive, 
that  Mr.  Holden  could  carry  out  this  sort  of  thing  so 
well.  He  has  really  taken  pains  to  show  us  he  knows 
.  how  to  do  it " 

"  Us  ! "  echoed  Kitty  under  her  breath  with  a  flash 
of  contempt  at  the  complacent  figure  opposite.  "Us!" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  41 

"You  won 'golden  opinions  from  all  sorts  of  people,' 
Miss  Helen,"  remarked  Mason. 

' '  He  means  because  you  wore  old-gold  color,  Helen, n 
explained  Bertha;  "Andrew  is  always  saying  cute  little 
things." 

Mrs.  Mason  made  no  comment  then,  although  she 
had  seen  Helen's  success  that  evening  as  plainly  as  An 
drew.  It  was  only  in  the  stillness  of  the  night,  with  her 
husband  asleep  beside  her,  that  she  vowed  that  the  first 
violin  in  the  orchestra  of  Lowton  society  should  never 
sink  into  'second  fiddle'  to  give  place  to  Helen  Bell. 

It  was  a  week  from  this  time  that  Holden,  calling  one 
morning  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's,  found  Mrs.  Mason  alone 
with  the  sunshine.  She  was  so  sorry  every  one  else  hap 
pened  to  be  away.  Mrs.  Edgerly  was  busied  with  her  do 
mestic  matters,  and  Miss  Bell  and  Bertha  had  gone  to 
drive  with  her  husband  and  a  niece  lately  come,  but  she 
thought  they  would  not  be  very  long  in  returning. 

As  Holden  sat  talking  and  waiting,  the  shutting  of  a 
door,  and  the  sound  of  footsteps  made  him  more  than 
once  end  a  sentence  abruptly  to  listen.  But  the  footsteps 
passed.  It  was  only  one  of  the  house-maids.  Two  days 
before,  he  had  taken  Helen,  Bertha  and  Andrew  Mason 
to  see  the  sunset  on  Mansfield  Hill,  a  height  commanding 
a  very  fine  view,  but  Kitty  had  scarcely  seen  him  since 
the  party.  She  began  to  talk  about  it  now,  praising  all 


42  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

his  arrangements,  and  going  on  to  speak  of  the  guests 
with  a  vivacity  too  amusing  to  let  one  remember  that 
the  comments  were  not  always  amiable. 

' '  It  was  very  fortunate  for  us,  Mr.  Holden, "  she  said 
at  last,  ' '  that  you  opened  your  house  to  your  friends  just 
at  this  time,  for  it  gave  Miss  Bell  a  pleasant  taste  of  gay- 
ety  that  comes  to  her  but  seldom,  if  at  all,  poor  thing. " 

' '  That  is  a  pity,  for  she  seems  to  be  fond  of  society. " 

"Yes,  indeed!  And  how  brilliant  she  looked  the 
other  evening.  You  must  have  seen  her  drinking  in 
homage  like  a  cordial  that  exhilarated  her." 

"No,"  interrupted  Holden,  "I  did  not.  She  seemed  to 
me  like  a  child  having  a  thoroughly  good  time,  only  that 
she  did  nothing  childish.  There  was  the  abandon  of  a 
true  worker  about  her.  It's  one  of  the  revenges  fate 
brings  upon  us  lazy  people,  I  mean  amateurs,  that  we 
don't  enter  into  things  with  the  zest  of  a  person  to  whom 
amusement  is  a  recreation.  Your  aunt  says  Miss  Bell  is 
one  of  the  hardest  workers  she  ever  saw.  She  speaks  of 
her  artistic  talent  as  being  of  a  very  high  order." 

"Abandon?"  echoed  Kitty.  "I  have  heard  this  thing 
said  about  her  before,"  she  added,  then  broke  off  abruptly. 
' '  Her  talents,  you  say  !  Yes, "  slowly,  ' '  she  is  a  very 
talented  girl,  fairly  brilliant,  and  she  has  abilities  even 
more  likely  to  be  of  service  to  her  than  painting  pictures 
— social  talents  I  mean,"  as  Holden  looked  puzzled. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  43 

"Ah!  yes." 

"Give  her  the  surroundings  of  wealth,  and  what  a 
crowd  of  devotees  would  be  always  about  her." 

Holden  was  silent.  He  sat  looking  moodily  into  the 
fire,  but  he  felt  no  warmth  from  it;  a  chill  like  ice  had 
touched  him. 

"How  very  finely  she  carries  her  head,"  resumed  Kitty, 
glancing  up  from  the  embroidery  with  which  she  had 
been  too  much  occupied  to  notice  her  companion's 
silence,  "and  then  she  has  a  manner  of  looking  some 
times  as  if  she  saw  far-away  things.  I  suppose  they  are 
great  pictures  she  is  painting  in  imagination.  It  is  very 
effective.  Altogether,  she  has  a  great  deal  of  beauty. 
Don't  you  think  so  ?  I  hope  she  will  get  this  jewel  well 
set;  she  ought." 

The  speaker  took  a  few  more  stitches  in  lieu  of  any 
reply. 

She  stole  a  glance  at  her  listener  as  she  stooped  and 
picked  out  another  shade  of  worsted  from  the  basket 
beside  her.  His  face  was  very  white,  and  his  brows 
knit. 

She  slowly  drew  out  her  color,  threaded  her  needle 
with  it,  and  began  to  sew  again.  After  a  moment  she 
held  off  the  embroidery  and  studied  it  with  an  absorbed 
look. 

"Don't  you   think   that   pansy   is   well   shaded,    Mr. 


44  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Holden  ?  I  really  pride  myself  on  my  fancy-work;  a 
mere  touch  of  our  Helen's  artistic  power." 

Jack  looked  at  it  vacantly  a  moment,  and  answered, 

"Very." 

Kitty  rose,  and  taking  the  tongs  laid  the  scattered 
brands  together  on  the  hearth,  and  replenished  the  fire. 
Then,  after  watching  the  eager  flames  dart  up  and  enwrap 
the  fresh  fuel,  she  turned  to  her  companion. 

"You  have  not  seen  her  sketches?  I  will  make  her 
show  them  to  you;  they  are  worth  seeing,  they  are  really 
very  fine.  How  delightful  it  is  to  be  able  to  do  such 
things — for  amusement.  But  it  is  drudgery  to  her,  since 
she  must  work.  Though  the  necessity  will  not  be  for 
very  long;  I  can  see  she  is  resolved  upon  this,  and  who 
can  blame  her  ?  It  is  so  hard  to  be  fettered,  especially  for 
ambition  like  hers." 

"  'Fettered'?" 

"  Poverty  fetters,  Mr.  Holden.  An  artist's  life  is  gener 
ally  a  hard  one,  and  Helen's  is  no  exception.  If  her  fa 
ther  and  brother  had  lived,  things  would  have  been  very 
different.  Poverty  is  a  constant  penance  to  her  artistic 
temperament  that  hungers  and  thirsts  for  luxury;  and  I 
see  it  is  a  penance  she  is  determined  to  be  rid  of.  Who 
has  a  right  to  blame  her  for  that,  poor  child  ? " 

"No,  certainly  not,"  said  Holden  rather  inconse- 
quently. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  45 

"  I  understand,"  he  added  after  a  pause — and  his  voice 
sounded  strange  to  himself.  "I  see.  That  is  why  she 
works  so  very  hard,  she  is  determined  to  shorten  the 
terrible  years  of  probation,  and  win  her  place  early.  She 
has  so  much  talent  and  courage  and  hope,  she  must 
succeed." 

Kitty  laughed. 

' '  You  are  right,  Mr.  Holden.  She  has  so  much  tal 
ent  and  courage  and  hope,  and  she  will  succeed." 

She  turned  her  eyes  upon  him  as  she  spoke,  and  by  a 
glance,  made  an  accusation  of  her  guest,  an  accusation  of 
worldliness  and  unwomanly  scheming  that  telegraphed  it 
self  on  the  heart  of  her  listener.  Why,  he  wondered, 
should  he  have  trusted  his  instincts  and  believed  in  a 
stranger  and — 

"It  is  always  so  safe, "  continued  Kitty,  ' ' to  care  most 
about  things  rather  than  people.  Then,  you  see,  one 
falls  quite  naturally  into  liking  best  just  the  people  that 
will  help  forward  the  objects  one  has  in  view,  like  art  and 
artistic  culture;  and  one  gets  through  life  without  suffer 
ing  from  sensitiveness.  I  sometimes  feel  as  if  I  half  en 
vied  Helen." 

"I  should  not  think  you  would." 

His  voice  was  low  and  hoarse  with  a  bitterness  in  it 
Kitty  had  never  heard  there  before. 

"Yes,"  she  said  softly,  "it  must  be  a  loss  to  one's  self 


46  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

to  think  of  other  people  only  for  what  they  can  do  to  fur 
ther  one's  own  purposes,  and  not  to  love  them  because 
you  can't  help  it.  But,  Mr.  Holden  you  mustn't  speak 
of  her  in  that  tone.  Helen  is  really  good  in  a  great  many 
ways;  I  am  fond  of  her;  she  is  very  charitable,  and  she 
has  so  little  to  be  charitable  with;  she  will  make  a  most 
gracious  Lady  Bountiful,  it's  no  wonder  she  plans  to 
become  one.  She  will  do  everything  beautifully — if  one 
does  not  ask  intensity  from  her.  I  don't  mean  intensity 
in  will  power." 

"You  mean  Miss  Bell  is  cold-hearted?" 

Kitty  turned  toward  him  in  quick  deprecation. 

"She  is  very  kind  to  everybody,  and  always  ready  to 
oblige  and  please  people.  I  should  not  have  allowed  you 
to  get  any  such  impression." 

"Is  it  true ? " 

There  was  an  authority  in  the  determined  tone  which 
she  dared  not  ignore. 

"Yes;  that  is  my  impression,  or,  more  frankly,  my 
knowledge. " 

She  dropped  her  eyes,  and  sat  idly  pricking  her 
needle  into  the  spaces  of  her  canvas,  then  looked  into 
ner  companion's  face  with  great  seriousness. 

"This  was  not  what  she  seemed  to  me,"  said  Holden. 

' '  Nor  to  most  people, "  was  the  answer.  ' '  But  I 
ought  not  to  have  spoken  at  all.  You  are  a  gentleman, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  47 

Mr.  Holden,"  she  added  earnestly;  "nothing  I  have  so 
imprudently  said  will  ever  go  beyond  you,  I  am  sure. 
Helen  is  our  guest;  I  admire  her  many  fine  qualities,  her 
talents  and  energy,  as  much  as  any  one.  It  was  inex 
cusable  to  speak  of  a  failing  that  concerned  neither  of 
us.  I  can't  forgive  myself." 

She  was  silent  a  moment.     But  Holden  did  not  speak. 

' '  Yet,  after  all, "  she  went  on  as  if  to  console  herself, 
' '  the  very  worst  one  can  make  of  it  is  that  Helen's  tem 
perament  is  artistic,  rather  than  her  soul.  She  toils  not 
from  love  for  her  art,  but  for  the  rewards  of  work.  In 
short,  she  is  an  excellent  business  woman.  Of  course 
she  loves  her  friends,  but  they  are  always  of  the  right 
kind,  and  her  husband,  when  she  marries — and  she 
will  marry  brilliantly — will  have  no  reason  to  complain, 
for  she  will  be  satisfied  with  her  choice.  She  will  not 
choose  imprudently,  and  throw  away  artistic  possibilities 
like  some  women,  because  you  see,  her  emotions  will 
never  get  the  better  of  her,  they  will  always  coincide 
with  her  judgment." 

Life  has  its  pay-days,  when  a  man  receives  into  his 
hand,  at  once,  the  result  of  months  or  years  of  character- 
building.  Kitty  well  knew  that  she  was  playing  upon 
a  serious  defect  in  Holden's  nature,  a  defect  perhaps 
largely  due  to  circumstances,  yet  warping  in  him  much 
that  was  good. 


48  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Miss  Bell's  emotions,  then,  will  always  coincide  with 
her  judgment,"  he  repeated  with  slow  and  scornful  dis 
tinctness;  "with  her  ambition,  rather." 

His  face  was  white  and  set  as  he  spoke,  and  scorn  was 
not  the  only  expression  in  it,  though  the  most  legible. 

The  door  from  the  library  to  the  room  they  were  in 
opened  so  quietly  that  it  must  have  been  standing  ajar, 
and  Helen  Bell,  her  pencil  and  sketch-block  in  her 
hand,  came  in. 

She  walked  directly  toward  the  door  that  opened  into 
the  hall,  and  at  that  point  in  the  path  nearest  Kitty, 
stopped,  and  turned  toward  her. 

"I  staid  at  home,  Mrs.  Mason,  on  account  of  some 
work.  A  few  moments  ago  I  came  into  the  library  for 
the  view  from  the  east  window.  I  have  overheard  the 
last  sentences,  for  I  did  not  know  until  my  name  was 
spoken  whom  you  were  talking  of.  I  leave  you  free  to 
finish  up  the  subject,  as  you  are  so  well  able  to  do." 

She  had  gone. 

Kitty  sat  silent,  trying  with  a  trembling  hand  to  take 
unconcernedly  some  stitches  in  her  embroidery. 

At  last  she  looked  up  with  a  low  laugh. 

"The  very  cleverest  thing  I've  known  of  her  doing 
yet" 

Holden  made  no  answer.  This  must  be  true,  he  saw; 
but  he  was  still  quivering  under  the  tumult  of  feeling 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  49 

Helen's  presence  created.  Her  eyes  had  stabbed  him 
with  the  memory  of  his  instinctive  trust  in  her.  She 
had  given  him  no  recognition  in  the  moment's  pause 
she  made,  but  he  knew  he  should  always  feel  the  con 
tempt  of  her  one  sweeping  glance,  after  which,  as  her 
eyelids  fell  low,  she  had  looked  away  as  if  he  were  for 
gotten.  Was  she  not  returning  what  she  had  received 
from  him  ?  he  reasoned.  Neither  of  them  had  anything 
to  complain  of;  each  understood  the  other — in  season. 
He  could  not  be  sorry  for  this  knowledge,  though  it  cost 
him  a  heavy  price. 

He  had  gone  to  the  house  that  morning  feeling  that 
his  steps  carried  him  there  all  too  slowly;  he  came  away 
confident  he  had  escaped  a  snare. 

Only  a  few  hours  before  this  conversation,  Helen  had 
yielded  to  Mrs.  Edgerly's  earnest  entreaty  that  she  would 
spend  the  entire  winter  in  Lowton.  She  knew  that  this 
arrangement  would  please  her  mother,  now  staying  with 
a  dear  friend  who  needed  her  in  the  sorrow  of  a  be 
reavement. 

Helen  would  not  break  her  promise  and  mar  the  pleas 
ure  of  several  people  on  Mrs.  Mason's  account.  She 
readily  assigned  to  her  a  motive  for  her  conduct;  but 
it  was  not  the  real  one,  she  never  thought  of  this. 

As  to  Mr.  Holden,  she  remembered  now  hearing 
somebody  say,  laughingly,  that  he  had  a  great  dread 


50  A    LAZY  MAWS    WORK: 

of  being  married  for  his  money,  but  she  had  forgotten 
it  again. 

She  recalled  with  stings  of  pride  that  she  had  not 
repelled  the  look  with  which  he  sometimes  turned  to 
her,  and  had  listened  to  him  with  no  sign  of  disapproval 
when  in  speaking  words  of  simple  courtesy  to  hei  his 
tones  had  softened  and  deepened. 

Her  eyes  were  brighter  the  rest  of  the  day,  and  her 
cheeks  somewhat  flushed,  but  her  manner  was  unusually 
cool  and  self-possessed. 

Kitty  had  bought  her  victory  dearly;  but  Helen  could 
not  speak,  and  it  was  worth  its  price. 

Two  inmates  of  Mrs.  Edgerly's  house  felt  no  surprise 
that  the  days  went  by  without  any  sign  of  the  neighbor 
who  had  become  so  frequent  and  welcome  a  visitor. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

SOON  after  the  Christmas  holidays  Mason  came  home 
one  morning  accompanied  by  Holden,  saying  that 
he  had  brought  him  here,  in  tow,  to  plead  his  own 
cause,  and  get  a  pardon,  if  he  could,  for  having  deserted 
them  all. 

"Mr.  Holden  has  probably  been  more  pleasantly  em 
ployed,"  said  Kitty  with  a  smiling  ease  that  surprised 
Jack.  It  was  only  a  fortnight  since  that  interrupted 
conversation  of  theirs  in  this  very  room,  an  event  that 
three  in  the  group  assembled  to-day  could  not  have  for 
gotten,  and  that  one  would  certainly  never  forget. 

He  looked  at  her  gravely,  and  did  not  remember  to 
speak  until  he  turned  to  shake  hands  with  Mrs.  Edgerly 
"in  the  doorway. 

"He  doesn't  say  one  word,"  cried  Bertha,  "so  it's 
true. " 

"What  is  true,   Miss  Edgerly?" 

"That  you  have  been  more  pleasantly  employed,  than 
in  coming  here  to  see  us." 


52  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"No,"  he  answered,  too  gravely,  he  perceived,  and 
added  lightly,  "but  if  I  had  been,  would  you  have  com 
pelled  me  to  say  so  ? " 

"Would  you  have  said  it?" 

"It  is  not  necessary  to  puzzle  one's  self  about  an 
impossible  contingency,"  answered  Jack  with  a  forced 
laugh. 

Helen  was  seated  at  the  other  end  of  the  room,  a 
young  lady  he  did  not  know  beside  her.  Andrew  intro 
duced  him  to  his  wife's  niece,  Miss  Grierson,  and  he 
felt  constrained  to  take  a  seat  near  the  stranger  for  a  time, 
wondering  as  he  did  it  if  Miss  Bell  would  move  away. 

But  after  a  simple  "good  morning"  she  took  no 
notice  of  him  whatever.  When  once  he  addressed  a 
trifling  remark  to  her,  she  was  listening  so  attentively  to 
something  Mason  was  saying,  leaning  back  in  his  easy 
chair,  that  she  did  not  hear  him  at  first,  and  brought 
herself  only  by  an  effort  to  answer.  Holden  could  not 
say  that  her  abstraction  was  put  on  for  effect,  because 
he  found  Andrew  so  interesting  that  both  he  and  Miss 
Grierson  by  tacit  consent  stopped  to  listen. 

' '  I  saw  your  friend,  Mr.  Dewey,  this  morning,  Ber 
tha,"  Helen  had  heard  him  begin,  and  the  extra  drawl 
in  the  tone  showed  there  were  accessories  to  this  fact. 

' '  I  hope  he  isn't  coming  here ! "  cried  Bertha  in  af 
fected  dismay. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  53 

"Didn't  seem  to  be  thinking  about  it.  He  was  in 
his  very  best  style,  in  Mrs.  Merton's  front  yard." 

"What  was  he  doing  there?"  questioned  Kitty. 

As  Andrew  cleared  his  throat,  the  laugh  quivered  in 
it,  for  Holden  and  he  were  looking  at  one  another  with 
the  sympathy  of  a  mutual  recollection. 

"What  was  he  doing?"  she  repeated. 

' '  I  should  say  he  was  dancing. " 

' '  Dancing  ?  " 

"Ye-es,  he  and  Mr.  Vaughan's  little  black  and  tan. 
The  dog  was  on  the  steps  where  he  meant  Dewey  should 
not  be,  and  Dewey  was  on  the  walk  where  he  seemed  to 
be  meditating  not  staying  a  great  while.  He  looked 
longingly  at  the  door,  and  regretfully  at  the  gate.  I  felt 
somewhat  doubtful  of  the  sequel.  I  watched  him,  as  he 
stood  thinking  what  a  pity  it  was  to  have  gotten  him 
self  up  so  for  nobody  but  a  '  dawg '  who  didn't  seem  to 
appreciate  it,  either.  With  this,  he  made  a  sudden  push 
for  the  steps,  and  the  dog  made  a  sudden  push  for  him. 
'The  dog's  was  a  good  deal  more  vigorous  than  Dewey's, 
and  sent  him  back  without  much  delay.  '  Ha  !  poor  fel 
low,  good  doggy,'  he  coaxed.  'Don't  you  know  me? 
I'm  not  going  to  hurt  you.'" 

' '  It's  a  good  thing  for  a  man  to  know  he  is  innocent 
of  evil  intent, "  drawled  Andrew  after  the  general  laughter 
had  subsided.  "This  didn't  make  any  impression  upon 


54  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

the  black  and  tan,  though;  he  growled  and  snapped  with 
just  the  same  spite  as  if  Mr.  Willie  had  asserted  him 
self  bent  on  plunder  and  foul  play.  Every  time  the 
poor  young  man  put  his  foot  forward  an  inch,  there  came 
a  succession  of  barks.  In  vain  Mr.  Dewey  looked  up 
at  the  windows  for  help.  I  wondered  if  Miss  Fisher 
were  watching  him.  Miss  Fisher,  Bertha,  is  a  dashing 
young  lady  who  has  been  in  town  the  past  few  weeks  vis 
iting  the  Mertons.  Your  friend's  toilet  was  made  for  her. 
But  however  much  he  regretted  this  love's  labor  lost, 
he  became  convinced  at  last  there  was  nothing  to  do 
but  beat  a  retreat  And  then,  alas  !  it  grew  plain  there 
wasn't  even  that,  for  though  the  dog  snapped,  and 
snarled,  and  threatened  whenever  he  attempted  a  single 
step  forward,  the  creature  seemed  about  to  fly  at  him 
and  tear  him  to  pieces  if  he  could  whenever  he  tried  the 
least  retrograde  movement.  All  his  coaxing  tones  and 
assurances  had  only  an  irritating  effect.  Oil  is  an  ex 
cellent  thing  for  raging  water,  but  it  doesn't  put  out 
fire." 

' '  Didn't  anybody  come  ?  "  asked  Bertha. 

"No;  the  house  stood  there  blind  and  deaf,  and 
Dewey  stood  growing  as  motionless  as  if  he  were  star 
ing  at  the  Gorgon." 

' '  And  what  were  you  doing  ?  " 

"  I  ?     Oh,   I  was  guardsman  outside  to  see  fair  play, 


A    LAZY  ALLY'S    WORK.  55 

and  not  let  any  other  dogs  in.  But  Holden  here  spoiled 
the  whole.  I'm  going  to  report  him  to  the  'Society 
for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Animals.'  Before  I 
had  even  seen  him,  down  he  swooped  on  that  valiant 
our,  and  caught  him  by  the  ears,  and  held  him  fast. 
'  What !  aren't  you  coming  ? '  he  called,  for  Mr.  Dewey 
seemed  inclined  to  be  going.  But  at  this  he  tipped  up 
the  steps — he  progresses,  Miss  Helen,  by  balancing  him 
self  on  one  leg  as  if  he  were  going  to  try  a  pirouette, 
and  then  experimenting  in  the  same  way  with  the  other. 
He  made  a  semi-circle  round  his  assailant,  generously 
leaving  him  as  much  of  the  field  as  possible.  The  dog 
burst  into  such  a  fury  and  made  such  lunges  at  Holden 
when  he  couldn't  reach  Dewey,  that  I  was  really  afraid 
he'd  bite  him.  But  he  had  roused  the  castle  at  last, 
for  the  door  opened,  and  Vaughan  came  out.  '  What's 
this  ? '  he  cried  to  his  dog,  in  a  tone  that  took  the  crea 
ture's  voice  quite  away,  and  left  him  with  an  humble 
air  of  apology  for  having  under  a  mistake  endeavored 
to  guard  his  master.  I  could  see  Vaughan  appreciated 
the  protection.  'Your  dog,  sir?'  asked  Mr.  Dewey  in 
the  tone  of  a  censor.  '  Quite  a  nuisance  of  a  little  ani 
mal,  sir;  and  he  hasn't  a  collar  on  either,  ought  to  be 
shot.'  Vaughan  looked  angry  until  he  caught  sight  of 
Holden 's  face;  for  just  then  Mr.  Dewey  turned  to  his 
rescuer  and  thanked  him  nonchalantly:  '  It  was  so  diffi- 


56  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

cult  to  keep  off  the  little  beast  and  ring  the  door-bell 
at  the  same  time,  he  explained.  Holden  vanished  sud 
denly,  and  outside  the  gate  ran  across  me  as  I  happened 
to  be  walking  by." 

"Mr.  Holden  behaved  a  great  deal  better  than  you 
did,  Uncle  Andrew,"  cried  Jenny  Grierson. 

Andrew  maintained  that  his  friend  had  shown  a  de 
plorable  want  of  appreciation  of  the  fitness  of  things. 
For,  if  two  boys  were  to  be  left  to  fight  out  their  own 
battles,  he  said,  he  didn't  see  why  two — 

But  Kitty  abruptly  asked  him  to  replenish  the  fire, 
and  he  left  his  sentence  unfinished. 

"We  had  a  splendid  drive  to  Mordent  yesterday/ 
said  Bertha  to  Mr.  Holden;  "the  sleighing  is  perfect.' 

"Let  us  take  advantage  of  it,  then,  to  go  round  by 
the  lake  as  we  were  talking  of  doing  some  day.  What 
do  you  say,  Mrs.  Mason  ?  Shall  it  be  to-morrow  ? " 

Kitty  would  like  it  very  much,  but  she  had  an  en 
gagement,  she  said. 

"The  day  following,  then;  or  the  next  fair  day?" 
he  asked. 

Bertha  was  delighted,  Jenny  Grierson  smiled  down 
at  her  knitting,  and  general  satisfaction  was  expressed. 

Helen  took  no  part  in  it.  Her  hands  lay  in  her  lap 
clasped  over  a  book  she  had  been  reading  when  the 
two  gentlemen  came  in. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  57 

Jack  looked  across  Miss  Grierson  toward  her. 

"I  hope  you  will  be  here,  Miss  Bell,  to  go  with 
the  party." 

"I  shall  probably  be  here  for  some  time,"  she  an 
swered  without  taking  her  eyes  from  a  child  in  the  street 
she  had  been  watching. 

"Yes,"  Mrs.  Edgerly  chimed  in,  "Helen  will  be 
with  us  all  winter,  and  we  want  to  make  it  as  pleasant 
as  possible  for  her,  and  for  Miss  Grierson." 

' '  She  certainly  knows  how  to  smile  as  if  she  had 
feeling,"  thought  Jack,  as  the  girl's  glance  turned  for  a 
moment  upon  the  speaker;  but  when  she  felt  his  eyes 
upon  her,  her  face  grew  stern,  without  changing  its 
position. 

' '  You  will  go,  then  ? "  he  asked  as  if  to  explain  this 
gaze,  but  his  manner  was  not  perfectly  cool  with  all  his 
effort 

"If  my  friends  go,"  she  answered  with  deliberation. 
Then  turning  her  head  and  meeting  his  eyes  fully,  she 
said, 

"Why  not?" 

The  blood  rushed  to  Holden's  face,  and  had  not  left 
it  when  Helen  rose  and  seating  herself  beside  Mrs. 
Edgerly,  began  talking  to  her.  He  had  often  felt  im- 
bittered  because  he  thought  too  large  a  share  of  the 
deference  he  received  was  due  to  his  wealth  and  position, 


58  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

but  he  had  not  realized  how  much  a  matter  of  course 
that  deference  had  grown  to  him.  Now,  this  girl,  who 
had  heard  him  speak  slightingly  of  her,  told  him  to  his 
face  that  his  opinion  was  not  worth  regarding. 

Mrs.  Mason  had  heard  it,  she  was  looking  at  him, 
and  her  half-smile  expressed  her  admiration  of  Helen, 
but  no  surprise.  He  confessed  the  admiration,  too,  even 
in  his  defeat.  For  he  saw  she  was  not  even  angry,  she 
found  him  fit  only  for  contempt,  ridicule,  for  there  had 
been  something  like  a  smile  hovering  on  her  lips  as  she 
asked  this  question.  The  thought  made  him  chafe. 

Her  expression  to-day,  proved  the  truth  of  Mrs.  Ma 
son's  words.  She  had  cared  for  his  attentions  through 
ambition  only,  she  was  really  cold-hearted;  he  had  not 
been  able  to  take  the  matter  so  lightly. 

"Yes,  we  are  quits,"  he  cried  on  his  way  home,  re 
peating  it  to  make  sure  it  was  true. 

"Invite  me  to  go  in  your  sleigh,  Mr.  Mason,"  said 
Helen,  softly,  as  they  stood  a  little  apart,  waiting  with 
the  others,  for  Holden  to  come  before  they  started  on 
the  proposed  drive. 

Andrew  looked  at  her  with  curiosity. 

"But  my  sleigh  holds  only  two,"  he  said  in  the  same 
undertone,  "and  Kitty  takes  her  invitation  for  granted." 

' '  Arrange  it  in  some  way  for  me,  please, "  she  repeated. 

Her  face  was  deeply  flushed,  and  she  looked  troubled. 


A    LAZY  MAN^S    WORK.  59 

"Just  as  you  wish,  Cousin  Helen." 

The  tones  were  so  kind  she  looked  up  in  sudden  grati 
tude.  He  saw  the  glistening  water  drops  in  her  eyes  for 
an  instant.  His  look  was  so  sympathetic,  and  so  full 
of  protection,  that  it  seemed  to  bring  her  strength,  and 
m  this  moment  Andrew  Mason  learned  a  great  deal  about 
that  real  Helen  Bell  whom  most  people  knew  slightly. 

When  the  party  had  all  assembled  on  the  steps  of  the 
porte-cochere,  Helen  stood  a  little  withdrawn  as  Jack 
came  up  to  help  her  into  his  sleigh,  in  which  Miss 
Grierson  was  already  seated,  and  Bertha  was  to  follow. 
He  had  never  seen  her  look  so  pale  and  haughty. 

"That's  not  fair,"  cried  Andrew,  "you  can't  always 
have  all  the  young  ladies.  Miss  Helen,  won't  you  ac 
cept  a  seat  with  us,  there  is  plenty  of  room  ? " 

' '  Thank  you,  with  pleasure,  if  I  shall  not  inconven 
ience  Mrs.  Mason." 

If  Mrs.  Mason  hesitated  ever  so  slightly,  Helen  re 
solved  to  stay  at  home. 

' '  Not  in  the  least,  "  said  Kitty.  ' '  I  should  be  delighted 
to  go  with  Mr.  Holden,"  she  added,  "  if  he  will  allow  me; 
only  too  glad  of  a  chance  to  desert  this  ancient  gentleman, 
and  ride  with  the  young  people,"  and  she  nodded  saucily 
at  Andrew  as  she  passed  him.  He  repaid  the  gesture  by 
pinching  her  arm  as  he  tucked  the  sleigh-robe  about  her. 

There  was  one  person  in  the  world  whom  Kitty  Mason 


60  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

loved  with  all  her  heart,  and  this  was  her  husband.  She 
believed  it  impossible  for  him  intentionally  to  do  anything 
wrong;  and  this  uprightness  was  the  greatest  comfort  to 
her.  She  never  expected  to  be  like  him,  and  she  did 
not  think  it  worth  while  to  attempt  his  role,  since  she 
should  never  play  it  with  the  perfection  of  reality,  and 
hated  to  undertake  anything  in  which  she  could  not  excel. 
In  her  husband's  footsteps  she  would  be  only  a  laggard, 
while  in  a  separate  department  each  did  admirably. 
She  knew  that  his  way  was  the  best  in  the  world,  but  it 
was  much  too  hard;  she  must  have  room  for  her  own 
peculiar  genius  to  develop  itself.  Truth  was  superb,  she 
realized,  but  finesse  was  dear  to  her  soul. 

Andrew  had  first  met  her  when  an  overwhelming  dan 
ger  threatened  her;  he  had  seen  and  loved  the  best  that 
was  in  her;  he  had  been  able  to  save  her,  and  had  mar 
ried  her  when  his  own  pity  and  her  fascination  blinded 
him  to  her  faults.  They  did  this  in  some  degree  to-day, 
for  it  is  easy  to  forgive  a  great  deal  to  one  who  loves  us, 
and  to  believe  that  a  nature  holding  this  germ  of  the 
highest  power,  is  capable  of  development  in  right  direc 
tions.  This  is  what  Andrew  felt  that  he  had  the  highest 
authority  for  believing.  Perhaps  he  overrated  her  power 
of  loving,  when  he  considered  this  fire  intense  enough  to 
finally  sublimate  her  nature  and  cast  out  its  dross. 

The    whole    drive    was    not    less    than    fifteen    miles, 


A    LAZY  MAN^S    WORK.  6 1 

and  they  all  came  back  merrily  at  sunset,  none  gayer 
than  Helen,  who  always  enjoyed  being  with  Mr.  Mason; 
he  seemed  to  understand  what  she  meant,  and  enter 
tained  her  so  well. 

Helen  seldom  staid  at  home  when  any  amusement 
of  this  kind  was  on  hand;  but  it  always  happened, 
simply  enough,  that  she  and  Mr.  Holden  never  drove 
or  walked  side  by  side,  even  if  they  were  in  the  same 
group;  and  when  he  came  to  the  house — he  had  a  habit 
of  dropping  in  on  his  way  down  town,  and  Mason  took 
care  to  return  his  visits — Miss  Bell  was  so  often  busy 
with  her  work  that  he  seldom  saw  her. 

He  came  one  evening.  She  was  in  the  drawing- 
room. 

"I  have  caught  you  now,"  he  thought. 

But  she  had  no  appearance  of  having  been  caught, 
she  greeted  him  as  politely  as  if  they  had  never  met 
before,  and  soon  after,  when  the  evening  mail  was 
brought  in,  she  slipped  away  from  the  roomful  of  peo 
ple  to  read  her  letters. 

"They  must  be  very  important,  or  very  long  and  in 
teresting,"  Holden  thought,  "to  keep  her  away  all 
the  rest  of  the  evening.  " 

They  were  more  important  to  Helen  than  any  one 
knew.  The  first  was  from  the  secretary  of  an  Art 
Committee,  informing  her  that  her  picture  was  accepted, 


62  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

and  would  be  advantageously  hung.  The  girl's  eyes 
shone  as  she  read. 

"Thank  Heaven  !  "  she  cried.  "How  I  have  worked, 
how  much  we  have  gone  without,  and  now,  perhaps, 
my  reward  is  coming;  I  will  believe  it  is." 

But  when  she  finished  her  second  letter  the  warmth 
died  out  of  her  face,  and  she  sat  thinking  with  head 
raised  and  mouth  firmly  set. 

This  epistle  was  from  an  old  school  friend,  an  artist, 
like  herself.  She  was  not  so  much  poorer  than  Helen 
had  been  until  the  last  few  months,  when  regular  work 
had  opened  to  her,  but  she  was  very  much  less  cour 
ageous,  and  not  disposed  to  be  silent  upon  the  subject 
of  her  hardships.  Besides  this,  Helen  knew  that,  while 
her  own  mother  encouraged  her  in  dark  days  and  bore 
every  privation  with  a  cheerfulness  inspiring  deeper  love 
in  the  daughter  and  nerving  her  to  fresh  efforts,  her 
friend's  parents  were  openly  dissatisfied  with  slow  re 
sults;  they  were  both  more  or  less  invalids,  aimless — un 
less  determination  to  get  whatever  one  can  from  others  be 
an  aim — and  carping.  Helen's  picture  and  this  friend's 
had  both  been  sent  to  the  Hanging  Committee.  Helen's 
had  won  a  place;  and,  wrote  the  other,  there  was  no  space 
left  for  hers.  "If  it  had  not  been  for  yours,"  she  said, 
"mine  would  have  had  a  chance;  "she  learned  this  fact 
from  a  private  and  reliable  source  on  the  very  day  her 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  63 

painting  was  rejected.  The  artist  did  not  say  in  so  many 
words,  ' '  Withdraw  your  picture; "  but  she  would  have 
been  more  honest,  and  no  more  exacting,  had  she  asked 
.this  sacrifice  outright. 

Helen  sat  quiet  for  some  time.  Then,  going  to  her 
desk  she  wrote  a  very  few  lines  hastily,  signed,  inclosed 
and  sealed  the  note. 

Bertha  knocked  at  her  door,  to  see  if  she  were  sick,  or 
had  heard  bad  news.  She  said  she  was  quite  well,  only 
tired,  and  if  they  would  excuse  her,  would  not  go  down 
again. 

"But  we're  having  such  a  good  time,"  pleaded  the 
girl,  "do  come." 

Helen  answered  that  she  was  very  glad  they  were  hav 
ing  a  pleasant  evening,  but  she  must  say  ' '  good  night. " 

Bertha  could  not  hear  the  sigh  that  accompanied  her 
\vords. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  next  day  Helen  was  in  the  morning-room  after 
breakfast,  looking  out  of  the  window — in  the 
dreamy  way  she  often  had  when  she  was  accomplishing 
most,  for  she  never  knew  where  the  subjects  for  her  im 
aginative  sketches  would  come  from — a  child  running 
past  might  bring  a  suggestion,  or  the  curious  shape  of  a 
tree  hold  a  grotesque  fancy  in  waiting  for  her.  She 
understood  that  people,  and  new  faces,  and  the  stimu 
lus  of  society  were  necessities  to  her  as  an  artist,  and 
that  often  when  she  seemed  most  at  play  she  was  doing 
her  best  work.  For,  the  salt  of  genius  in  the  character 
needs  the  stir  of  life  before  it  can  crystallize  into  forms 
of  beauty;  perhaps  the  stir  may  come  from  the  throwing 
of  some  foreign  object  into  the  mind;  what  that  object 
will  be,  no  human  foresight,  not  even  the  seeker's,  can 
perceive.  When  it  comes  the  thing  is  done,  until  it  does 
come  the  world  to  be  created  is  without  form  and  void. 
When  Helen  had  seated  herself  with  her  eyes  upon  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  65 

street,  all  the  family  were  in  the  room;  but  as  she  fell 
into  reverie  about  the  letters  she  had  received  the  night 
before,  three  of  them  went  away  to  real  or  imagined  du 
ties  in  other  parts  of  the  house.  One  person  only  was 
left  there  sitting  in  an  easy  chair,  watching  the  girl's  pro 
file  against  the  window,  and  thinking  she  was  much  too 
pale  nowadays,  and  somewhat  thinner  than  when  she 
came  to  Lowton;  seeing  a  little  sad  droop  of  the  mouth 
that  was  by  no  means  there*  because  she  had  been  indus 
trious  as  well  as  gay  for  the  past  two  months,  reviewing 
trifling  incidents,  and  studying  causes  with  a  keenness  that 
would  have  alarmed  Helen  greatly,  had  she  dreamed  of  it. 

Presently  she  asked, 

"Who  is  this,  Bertha?" 

' '  Bertha  is  not  here, "  said  a  voice. 

She  turned  suddenly,  and  found  no  one  but  Andrew 
in  the  room. 

"Where  are  they  all?" 

' '  I  heard  Kitty  say  she  was  going  to  get  her  basket 
of  worsted,  and  Bertha  is  making  cake. " 

Helen  laughed  a,t  his  tone. 

' '  Is  this  last  a  confidential  communication  ? " 

Mason  uttered  a  subdued  chuckle. 

' '  We  are  all  expected  to  stand  in  awe  of  her  culinary 
attainments,"  he  explained. 

' '  Is  she  a  wonderful  cook  ?  " 


66  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Very  wonderful.  You  must  learn  her  receipt  for 
cake-making." 

"Thank  you.     I'll  ask  her  sometime." 

' '  Better  ask  me.  I'm  afraid  she  would  forget  to  men 
tion  the  most  important  ingredient. " 

"Is  it  always  the  same ?  "  asked  Helen. 

"  Always." 

"  That's  odd.     What  is  it  ?     Plenty  of  sugar  ?  " 

"No,  not  always  sugary,"  he  drawled.  "She  walks 
into  the  kitchen,  says  a  few  cabalistic  words  to  the  cook, 
gives  a  stir  or  two  to  something  mixed  in  a  pan,  and 
walks  out  again  with  great  access  of  importance.  After 
a  while  a  delicious  compound  appears  upon  the  table. 
Try  it  some  day,  Miss  Helen,  but  be  sure  not  to  forget 
the  cook,  she  is  the  necessary  ingredient.  She  went  vis 
iting  once,  and  Bertha  gave  us  some  yellow  sponge  dipped 
in  soapsuds  for  tea. " 

Helen  laughed  again. 

"How  severely  you  criticise,"  she  said. 

' '  Why  can't  she  say  she  does  the  cooking  by  proxy  ?  " 
asked  Andrew.  "What  is  the  use  of  acting,  when  no 
body  is  deceived  ?  " 

"Then  you  approve  of  it  when  somebody  is  deceived." 

She  said  this  merely  as  a  retort,  laughing  as  she  spoke. 
But  to  her  surprise  Mason  answered  gravely: 

"A  great   deal  of  the   acting  is  self-deception,    Miss 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK".  67 

Helen.  Remember  that  when  you  are  tempted  to  be 
severe. " 

She  was  silent  Was  this  what  he  thought  of  his  wife  ? 
Was  he  trying  to  shield  Kitty  from  her  judgment?  It 
was  not  likely.  But  the  possibility  prevented  her  an 
swering  him. 

"  I  will  tell  you  one  person,"  he  went  on,  after  a  pause, 
"who  has  a  real  horror  of  little  deceits  of  all  kinds;  and 
that  is  why  I  like  him,  though  he  has  some  decided  faults. " 

She  looked  up  expectantly. 

"I  mean  Jack  Holden.  One  can  always  rely  upon 
him,  and  there  is  nothing  he  would  not  forgive,  I  be 
lieve,  sooner  than  having  been  deceived. " 

Helen  fixed  her  eyes  on  Mason  steadily,  and  answered: 

"I  know  Mr.  Holden  very  slightly,  but  I  never  saw 
anything  particularly  just  or  admirable  in  him.  You 
have  a  much  better  opportunity  of  judging,  however — " 

"Than  you  permit  him  to  give  you." 

Helen  rose.  She  was  sure  she  had  neither  betrayed 
consciousness  in  her  answer,  nor  waited  too  long  before 
speaking,  although  the  sense  of  time  had  gone  from 
her,  but  now  her  face  flushed  with  indignant  pride. 

"I  am  going  to  get  my  pencil,"  she  said.  "I  ought 
to  be  at  work  this  morning,"  and  went  away  for  her 
materials. 

"Than  I  permit  him,"  she  thought  on  her  way  up- 


68  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

stairs.  "How  little  Mr.  Mason  guesses.  I  am  so  glad 
it  looks  like  this  to  him;  I  should  make  it  so,  if  that 
were  necessary.  But  it  is  the  farthest  from  it. " 

When  she  returned  to  the  room  Bertha  had  come  in 
again,  and  a  gentleman  was  there  whom  she  had  never 
seen  before.  He  was  above  average  height,  with  a  bril 
liant,  dark  complexion,  brown  eyes  and  hair,  a  Roman 
nose  in  miniature,  and  a  mouth  whose  upper  corners 
he  had  a  peculiar  habit  of  elevating,  giving  him  a  cynical 
expression  that,  united  with  a  dignified  bearing,  would 
have  been  supercilious.  But  his  absence  of  dignity  was 
very  noticeable;  he  was  fidgety  and  self-conscious,  most 
anxious  to  be  an  object  of  admiration,  most  fearful  he 
should  in  some  way  excite  secret  merriment,  and  much 
more  successful  in  respect  to  his  fears  than  his  hopes. 

Helen  knew  instinctively  this  must  be  Mr.   Dewey. 

He  was  effusively  polite;  paid  Helen  three  compli 
ments  in  as  many  minutes,  conventional  little  speeches 
that,  with  Andrew's  mysteriously  serious  face  to  glance 
into  as  she  received  them,  she  enjoyed  exceedingly. 
Then,  suddenly  recollecting  himself,  he  turned  to  Bertha 
with  words  which  were  evidently  meant  as  an  apology 
for  his  not  having  included  her  in  his  most  flattering 
attentions  that  morning. 

Mason  suggested  he  had  better  make  up  for  lost  time 
at  once. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  69 

Mr.  Dewey  stared  at  him  with  an  expression  between 
perplexity  and  defiance. 

"You  don't  understand  about  young  ladies  as  well 
as  you  used  to  when  you  were  younger,  Mason,"  he 
began  in  a  sibilant  half-whisper,  putting  both  hands  into 
his  pockets,  and  standing  over  Andrew  in  a  half-apolo 
getic,  half-hostile  attitude;  "they  like  such  things.  There 
is  a  natural  difference  between  the  masculine  mind  and 
the  feminine  mind,  and  each  should  have  the  food  it 
prefers.  Ladies  enjoy  sweets." 

' '  Do  you  enjoy  sweets,   Miss  Bell  ? "  asked  Andrew. 

"Certainly;  sugar-plums,   huge  ones." 

Mr.  Dewey  smiled  a  satisfied  assent,  elevating  the  cor 
ners  of  his  mouth  still  higher. 

The  door  from  the  library  opened  half  way,  and  Mrs. 
Edgerly's  voice  said, 

' '  Haven't  you  gone  yet,  Bertha  ?  I  wish  you  would 
call  at  Mr.  Snow's  on  your  way,  and  send  him  up  at 
once,  I  want  those  curtains  hung,  and  he  told  me  he'd 
be  here  yesterday.  I  beg  your  pardon,  Mr.  Dewey,"  as 
she  came  in.  "I  didn't  see  you.  There  is  no  hurry. 
Miss  Bell  and  Bertha  were  going  out  for  a  walk  in  the 
course  of  the  morning." 

But  Mr.  Dewey  would  not  stay,  and  begged  to  accom 
pany  them. 

When  the  two  girls  returned   Jack   Holden  was  talk- 


70  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

ing  with  Andrew.  He  explained  his  presence  here  again 
to-day,  by  saying  he  had  been  asking  Mason's  advice 
about  some  little  matter  of  business,  and  must  go  when 
he  had  said  "good  morning"  to  them. 

This,  apparently,  took  some  time  to  do,  for  he  was 
still  seated  when  Helen  came  back  from  taking  off  her 
wrappings. 

Bertha  had  thrown  herself  into  a  rocking-chair,  her 
cloak  over  the  arm  of  it  and  her  bonnet  still  on.  She 
was  listening  to  Mr.  Holden  with  a  smile  upon  her  face. 

"But  you  haven't  told  us  how  nicely  you  played 
preux  chevalier;  we  found  it  quite  amusing,  did  we  not  ?  " 
she  added,  turning  to  Helen  as  she  came  in. 

"  No, "  answered  Helen. 

Kitty  glanced  at  her  with  quick  curiosity,  noticing  the 
gravity  of  her  tone. 

But  Helen  seated  herself  without  saying  more,  and 
Kitty  was  obliged  to  wait  until  she  could  learn  from 
Bertha,  later,  what  both  question  and  answer  meant. 

Holden  looked  surprised,  embarrassed  for  a  moment, 
then  directly  began  to  speak  of  something  else. 

Helen,  as  she  sat  there  taking  small  part  in  the  con 
versation,  remembered  what  she  had  said  to  Mason  about 
Mr.  Holden  a  few  hours  before.  The  morning's  inci 
dent  to  which  Bertha  was  referring  was  very  trifling  in 
itself;  but  as  an  indication  of  character  it  had  its  weight. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  71 

The  walk  which  the  two  girls  had  taken  with  Mr. 
Dewey,  had  led  them  down  a  steep  street  running  into 
another  scarcely  less  so.  There  had  been  rain  in  the 
night,  and  the  sidewalks  were  very  icy.  A  few  rods  be 
fore  them  was  a  woman  who  seemed  in  imminent  dan 
ger  of  slipping  down,  partly  through  her  great  fear  of 
doing  it,  for  she  shuffled  and  twisted  about  so  much 
to  avoid  the  worst  places,  that  in  all  probability  she 
was  destined  soon  to  find  one  of  them,  and  succumb 
to  it  She  was  a  woman  apparently  of  about  sixty, 
dressed  in  rusty  black.  She  looked  thinly  clad  for  the 
winter  weather.  In  her  hand  was  swinging  a  black 
bag,  like  that  of  an  agent  of  the  poorer  sort.  The  sup 
posed  contents  of  this  were  a  great  source  of  amusement 
to  Bertha  and  Dewey,  as  they  announced  the  different 
articles  that  would  be  scattered  on  the  sidewalk  if  only 
these  oscillations  should  become  a  little  more  violent. 
Before  they  came  up  with  her,  Bertha  stopped  at  the 
door  of  a  house  to  deliver  some  message,  and,  as  it 
happened,  the  woman  stopped,  too,  a  little  distance 
off,  and  addressed  a  gentleman  passing  by,  evidently 
hoping  to  find  in  him  a  customer.  The  man  said 
"yes,"  "yes,"  impatiently,  as  she  told  him  of  the  dif 
ferent  things  she  had  to  sell,  yet  he  lingered  and  bought 
something  of  her,  as  Helen  was  near  enough  to  see, 
while  she  waited  on  the  sidewalk  for  Bertha. 


72  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  Did  you  hear  that  ?  "  asked  Dewey.  ' '  She  recom 
mends  him  to  buy  her  chromo  flowers  because  they  will 
last,  and  are  better  than  the  real  ones.  Isn't  that  the 
funniest  thing  out  ?  " 

Helen  said  "yes"  absently.  She  was  noticing  the 
piteous  look  in  the  woman's  face,  and  the  respecta 
bility  that  made  itself  felt  through  her  shabby  garments 
and  her  importunity. 

At  this  moment  Bertha  called  her  up  to  the  door  of 
the  house,  and  when  the  two  turned  away  from  it,  the 
woman  was  far  along  the  street,  clinging  to  the  fence 
as  she  went  on. 

"Don't  walk  so  fast,  Helen,"  cried  Bertha.  "You 
will  be  down  in  a  moment  if  you  do." 

"Then  I  shall  wait  for  you  to  pick  me  up,"  she 
called  back. 

Just  after  the  woman  had  disappeared  by  turning  the 
corner  at  the  foot  of  the  street,  a  sleigh  dashed  by. 
Helen  recognized  Mr.  Holden's  horse.  As  she  reached 
the  corner  she  saw  this  sleigh  drawn  up  to  the  sidewalk 
and  its  owner  helping  the  poor  woman  into  it  with 
the  utmost  care.  He  was  off  again  directly;  she  was 
sure  he  had  not  perceived  her. 

It  was,  indeed,  a  very  little  thing  to  give  a  strange  old 
woman  a  seat  in  his  sleigh  down  an  icy  street,  when, 
in  passing,  he  noticed  her  fear  of  falling,  yet  Helen 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  73 

would  not  now  have  said  that  she  had  never  seen  any 
thing  just  or  admirable  in  Jack  Holden. 

Bertha  and  Mr.  Dewey,  their  pace  quickened  by  her 
rapid  steps,  had  also  reached  the  corner  as  the  sleigh 
was  driving  off.  They  regretted  having  missed  the  first 
part  of  the  performance,  and  Helen  remembered  that 
they  had  not  caught  sight  of  the  woman's  look  of 
amazement  and  gratitude. 

"Did  you  find  Mr.  Dewey  as  entertaining  as  you  ex 
pected,  Helen  ? "  Kitty  asked  abruptly,  perceiving  that 
Bertha  was  making  some  mistake,  and  not  quite  clear 
whether  the  young  lady  herself  saw  this,  or  in  her  si 
lence  was  only  meditating  a  further  attack  upon  the 
subject. 

"I  had  no  great  expectations,"  she  answered,  "and 
those  I  had  were  justified." 

"That's  a  pity,"  remarked  Andrew,  "for  he  is  sure 
to  have  you  down  on  his  list  by  this  time." 

"His  list?" 

"Ye-es,"  he  drawled.  "Mr.  Dewey  appreciates  his 
masculine  prerogative  to  the  utmost.  He  keeps  a  list 
of  all  the  eligible  young  ladies  about  Lowton,  which 
he  adds  to  at  discretion.  I  don't  think  he  is  of  Mor 
mon  proclivities,  but  he  feels  he  has  all  the  world  be 
fore  him  where  to  choose,  and  he  is  anxious  to  choose 
the  best  thing  out;  so,  I  can't  say  you  will  be  the  favored 


74  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'. 

one,  Miss  Helen,  but  no  doubt  you'll  have  the  honor 
of  a  place  among  the  candidates." 

' '  I  shall  be  very  proud  of  that, "  she  laughed. 

"Ye-es,  ye-es.  I  don't  know  how  long  the  list  is 
now.  He  had  thirty  names  at  one  time." 

"It  varies,"  explained  Holden,  "because  every  now 
and  then  one  of  these  beauteous  ladies,  either  uncon 
scious  or  unmindful  of  her  great  privilege,  bestows  her 
heart  and  hand  upon  some  undeserving  suppliant,  and 
Mr.  Dewey  has  no  way  left  him  of  showing  his  con 
tempt  but  by  black  lining  her  name  off  his  roll  of 
honor. " 

"Once  he  was  hoaxed  into  putting  down  the  name  of 
a  married  lady,"  said  Mason,  "and  he  kept  it  there  a 
month  before  he  found  out  Wasn't  he  furious  ! " 

"Was  it  you  did  it,  Andrew?"  asked  Kitty. 

"Um!"  said  Andrew  meditatively.  "Had  too  big 
a  fire  made  up  here,  Kitty,  it's  hot." 

"But  you  ought  to  hear  him  talk  literature,  and  art, 
and  science,  Helen,"  cried  Bertha;  "he  really  does  know 
a  great  deal,  he  reads  everything,  and  is  up  in  all  the 
'isms'  of  the  day." 

"Ye-es,  ye-es,  that's  so,"  assented  Mason;  "he  hasn't 
ballast  enough  to  keep  down." 

Holden  laughed. 

"Mav   I    not    show   these   to   Mr.    Holden?"    asked 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  75 

Mrs.  Mason  laying  her  hand  upon  a  portfolio  on  the 
table,  and  looking  at  Helen  who,  finding  Mr.  Dewey 
in  the  room  when  she  brought  it  down,  had  left  it  there 
unopened. 

The  girl  flushed.  She  was  unwilling  to  express  con 
cern  enough  to  speak  the  "no"  that  came  to  her  lips. 

The  sketches  were  well  worth  looking  at,  as  Kitty  had 
said,  and  received  at  least  something  of  the  praise  they 
deserved.  Helen  felt  a  sudden  thrill  of  fear  as  she  saw 
her,  in  turning  them  over,  hand  to  Mr.  Holden  the  one 
she  had  been  at  work  upon  that  day  in  the  library. 

In  the  background  was  the  figure  of  a  lady  walking 
through  a  grove.  Her  face,  which  was  shaded  by  a  sum 
mer  hat,  was  turned  away,  so  that  only  the  outline  of  the 
cheek  was  visible,  her  figure  and  motion  were  full  of 
grace  and  freedom.  Behind  her,  unseen,  unheard,  with 
an  expression  of  eager  longing  and  devotion,  walked  her 
lover;  his  quiet,  yet  hasty,  steps  evidently  gaining  upon 
her  and  about  to  reach  her  side.  Helen  remembered 
that  on  that  morning  she  had  perceived  with  confusion 
Mr.  Holden's  face  in  that  of  the  lover.  But  to-day,  after 
an  anxious  glance  at  the  two  persons  before  her,  she  saw 
that  she  had  really  changed  the  face  beyond  all  recognition. 

' '  This  is  a  very  spirited  sketch,  Miss  Bell, "  said  Jack, 
studying  it  attentively;  "the  young  man's  expression  is 
fine." 


76  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"The  conventional  thing,  I  suppose,"  she  answered. 
' '  People  will  have  that  kind  of  amusement,  and  it  pays 
to  represent  it  for  them." 

She  saw  the  sudden  flash  of  contempt  in  his  face,  and 
smiled. 

"You  do  it  uncommonly  well  for  an  outsider,  Miss 
Helen,"  said  Mason. 

"You  can't  draw  if  your  hand  shakes,"  she  answered; 
"you  must  be  able  to  see  things  in  perspective  if  you 
want  to  succeed  in  your  work." 

Holden  glanced  at  Kitty. 

"And  Miss  Bell  certainly  wishes  that." 

"I  intend  it,   Mr.    Holden." 

"  It  is  a  fine  thing  to  have  an  aim  before  one  if — if  one 
have  nerve  to  throw  aside  everything  in  the  way  of  it" 

"Religion  requires  a  man  if  he  has  made  a  vow,  to 
keep  it;  and  do  you  think  the  world  is  any  less  exacting?" 
answered  Helen. 

"I  have  never  felt  it  necessary  to  try  it" 

"No." 

In  a  moment  he  saw  she  must  have  misunderstood  him. 
But  there  was  nothing  he  could  add  without  condemning 
her  still  more. 

She  took  up  some  fancy-work  and  amused  herself  with 
it,  glancing  at  the  sketches  only  when  some  one  asked 
her  a  question,  but  this  was  many  times,  for  they  led  to 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  77 

a  good  deal  of  conversation.  At  last,  as  Andrew  closed 
the  portfolio,  he  said, 

"You  seem  in  a  brown  study,  Miss  Helen.  I  am 
sorry,  for  we  have  missed  you  here.  But  you  may  have 
been  silently  preparing  more  sketches  for  us  in  future." 

"Oh  no,  I  have  been  as  idle  as  that  well-known 
'  painted  ship  upon  a  painted  ocean. '  I  have  not  had  an 
original  idea.  There  has  only  been  a  queer  old  saying 
from  the  Sanskrit  running  in  my  head,  just  as  things  will 
do  when  people  feel  stupid,  and  as  inapplicable  as  such 
snatches  usually  are: 

"'A  wealthy  man  not  drunk  Vith  pride, 
A  youth  who  fickle  folly  flees, 
A  ruler  scoming  careless  ease, 
Among  the  great  enrolled  abide.'  " 

"She  did  mistake  me,"  thought  Jack.  "To  believe 
I  could  mean  on  account  of  having  money;  how  uncom 
fortable  !  But  I  understand  her.  That,  after  all,  is  the 
main  thing.  She  defies  me  now  that  I  know.  If  only 
she  had  not  overheard  what  must  have  wounded  her 
pride  so  much." 

He  went  home  feeling  that  he  had  never  seen  the  face 
nor  the  work  of  an  ambitious,  cold-hearted  woman  so 
much  like  that  of  a  true  one.  Yet  he  had  heard  her 
own  words  of  self-seeking  and  of  mocking  defiance. 


78  A    LAZY   MAWS    WORK. 

How  real  she  had  seemed  to  him  at  first,  how  happy 
at  times,  and  what  a  sense  of  hidden  resource  and 
strength  her  quieter  moods  had  given  him  !  When,  be 
fore  Kitty  had  spoken,  he  had  gathered  from  light  words 
of  her  own  that  want  of  money  cut  her  off  from  many 
pleasures,  the  blood  ran  leaping  in  his  veins  at  the 
thought  that,  if  she  would,  he  could  give  them  all  to  her. 
This  sense  of  ability  to  serve  her  thrilled  him  with  a  new 
and  exquisite  delight.  On  this  day  when  every  feeling 
he  had  left  for  her  was  a  certain  intellectual  interest  and 
an  admiration  of  her  cool  pride  and  power,  he  remem 
bered  all  his  former  trust  in  her  and  his  hopes. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

IT  was  a  very  stormy  evening  in  the  middle  of  February, 
recalling  to  Helen  the  night  of  her  arrival  in  Lowton, 
in  that  first  severe  storm  of  the  season.  The  snow  fell 
furiously,  and  the  wind  drifted  it  across  the  street,  across 
the  gate,  against  the  house,  into  its  angles,  where  the 
eddies  whirled  and  piled  it  high. 

Kitty  had  been  feeling  all  day  that  her  cold  was  so 
severe  she  ought  to  send  for  the  doctor,  but  she  hated 
the  idea  of  being  sick,  and  delayed  from  hour  to  hour, 
sure  she  should  soon  be  better.  At  night  the  storm  that 
had  been  increasing  since  four  o'clock,  when  Helen  came 
in  hurriedly  from  some  errand,  was  so  violent  she  did 
not  like  to  send  any  one  through  it,  and  liked  still  less 
to  bring  out  her  physician,  who  was  not  a  young  man, 
and  never  lacked  for  this  kind  of  work.  If  Mason  had 
been  at  home,  the  messenger  would  have  been  dispatched 
in  the  morning,  but  he  had  gone  out  of  town  several  days 
before.  So  Kitty  decided  that  all  she  wanted  was  to  be 
let  alone.  She  refused  everybody's  remedies,  and  went  to 


So  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

bed  early,  sure  she  should  get  a  good  night's  sleep  which 
would  make  her  all  right 

But  the  sleep  did  not  come.  Instead  of  it  was  rest 
lessness,  and  about  midnight  an  incessant  cough  began. 

As  soon  as  this  cough  had  fairly  established  itself, 
Helen  came  out  of  her  room,  which  was  next  to  Kitty's, 
and  walking  up  to  the  bedside  with  a  small  phial  in  her 
hand,  said, 

"I  was  sure  you  would  want  this,  Mrs.  Mason,  before 
the  night  was  over,  your  cough  is  so  like  mine  when  I 
take  a  sudden  cold.  Mamma  insisted  upon  my  bringing 
this  medicine  with  me,  it  helps  me  more  than  anything 
else. " 

' '  Thank  you, "  said  Kitty  trying  not  to  catch  her  breath 
as  she  spoke;  "I  remember  you  told  me  about  it,  but 
I  thought  I  should  do  nicely." 

' '  I  know  you  did,  but  my  own  experience  has  taught 
me  better." 

Kitty  watched  her  idly  as  Helen  turned  up  the  gas  and, 
standing  beside  it,  poured  out  the  dose  from  the  phial 
in  her  hand.  Apparently,  she  had  not  been  in  bed,  for 
she  seemed  only  to  have  put  on  a  sack  in  place  of  her 
dress.  She  had  been  brushing  out  her  hair,  which  fell 
about  her  shoulders  to  her  waist  like  a  dark  mantle. 
There  was  no  look  of  sleep  in  the  bright  eyes,  or  the 
resolute  face. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  8 1 

' '  Where  did  you  get  a  teaspoon  ?  "  asked  Kitty  as  she 
watched  her.  "I  suppose  you  went  into  Aunt  Bertha's 
room  for  it.  You  disturbed  her,  I  am  afraid.  There 
was  one  here,  if  you  had  asked  me." 

"But  I  didn't  disturb  any  one.  I  brought  the  spoon 
upstairs  with  me  to-night,  I  was  so  sure  you  would  need 
it.  But  don't  talk.  Take  this,  and  I  know  you  will  go 
to  sleep." 

' '  What  is  it  like  ?  I  perfectly  hate  unpalatable  things. 
I  never  take  them;  the  doctor  always  finds  me  some 
thing  else." 

"I  have  nothing  else,"  said  Helen;  "  this  is  not  bad. 
Take  it,  please." 

Kitty  daintily  sipped  at  the  medicine  preparatively  to 
taking  the  whole  spoonful. 

But  she  instantly  sprang  up. 

' '  I  wouldn't  swallow  a  drop  of  such  vile  stuff  for  the 
world,"  she  cried.  "I  never  tasted  such  bitterness.  I 
would  rather  cough  for  a  week.  How  could  you  give 
it  to  me  ?  " 

Helen's  lip  curled,  and  her  eyes  flashed. 

' '  I  did  not  understand  you, "  she  answered.  ' '  I 
should  not  suppose  anybody  would  mind  a  trifle  like 
that  in  comparison  with  a  dangerous  cough.  Think 
of  it,  Mrs.  Mason." 

"No,   thank  you.     Only  try  it  yourself." 


82  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"I  have,  many  a  time.  I  don't  call  it  bad;  but  if 
you  don't  want  it,  good  night." 

When  Helen  had  gone,  Kitty  took  a  bonbon  from 
her  box  to  sweeten  her  mouth,  and  her  temper,  and 
tried  to  compose  herself  to  sleep  and  prove  the  need- 
lessness  of  the  other's  nostrum. 

But  instead  of  doing  this,  she  lay  tossing  restlessly,  ex 
cited  by  a  startling  thought  and  filled  with  feverish  fancies. 

Her  cough,  which  was  partly  nervous,  subsided  at 
last,  however,  and  she  slept  fitfully,  awaking  with  a 
sense  of  weariness.  But  she  insisted  upon  going  down 
to  the  breakfast-table,  and  was  really  no  worse.  In  a  day 
or  two,  through  sheer  determination,  it  seemed,  she  was 
comparatively  well  again.  Helen,  who  never  had  more 
to  do  with  her  than  politeness  required,  was  unusually 
cool. 

Kitty  came  into  her  room  on  the  third  morning  after 
the  fit  of  coughing. 

' '  Will  you  let  me  look  at  that  delicious  medicine  of 
yours,  that  I  offended  you  so  the  other  night  by  not 
taking  ? "  she  asked  with  a  short  laugh. 

' '  Certainly. " 

But  Helen  seemed  in  no  haste  to  get  it.  She  went 
on  for  a  few  moments  with  what  she  was  doing;  then 
going  to  her  trunk,  came  back  holding  the  phial  up 
before  the  other. 


A    LAZY  MAM'S    WORK.  83 

"This  is  it." 

"Thank  you.  May  I  take  it  a  few  moments?  I  want 
to  see  if  it  looks  like  something  I  have, "  and  she  held 
out  her  hand. 

"No,"  said  Helen,  "not  the* phial.  I  will  give  you 
some  of  it,  if  you  want  to  try  it." 

"Should  you  advise  it?" 

"I  advise  nothing.  I  will  give  it  to  you  if  you 
choose. " 

"Thank  you.  I  will  keep  some  by  me,  and  then 
if  I  feel  worse  I  can  screw  my  courage  to  the  sticking 
point,  and  not  fail  ignominiously  as  I  did  the  other  night. 
You  brought  this  bottle  from  home  with  you  ? " 

' '  Yes.     Have  you  brought  anything  to  put  it  in  ?  " 

"No,  I  expected  you  would  lend  me  the  bottle; 
but  no  matter,  I  can  get  something  in  my  room." 

Helen's  only  answer  was  an  attitude  of  waiting. 

"You  look  very  pale,"  she  said,  scanning  Kitty's 
face  closely  as  she  returned.  "You  had  better  be  a 
little  more  careful  of  yourself." 

"That  is  only  because  you — I  am  much  better,"  said 
Kitty,  "and  I  am  very  much  obliged.  Now,  I  will  not 
interrupt  you  any  longer." 

But  she  turned  back  to  say, 

' '  Oh  !  by  the  way,  have  you  the  prescription  for  this, 
in  case  I  should  want  more  of  it  ? " 


84  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"No,  only  the  number.  But  it  was  put  up  at  home, 
and  I  can  get  the  prescription  for  you  sometime,  I  think. 
Meanwhile,  what  I  have  here  is  at  your  service,  if  you 
need  more." 

Kitty  looked  back,  and  saw  her  at  once  replacing  the 
phial. 

' '  I  should  think  you  would  be  afraid  to  put  that  into  a 
trunk,"  she  said,  "lest  it  should  spill." 

"Not  in  one  of  the  compartments.  I  don't  like  a 
room  lined  with  bottles  like  an  apothecary's  shop." 

"Ah!  yes,  I  see."     And  this  time  Kitty  really  left  her. 

That  afternoon,  to  everybody's  dismay,  Mrs.  Mason  in 
sisted  upon  going  out.  She  had  an  errand  that  nobody 
could  do  for  her,  although  there  were  plenty  of  volunteers. 
She  did  not  think  the  clear  air  would  do  her  any  harm,  if 
it  was  cold. 

Two  days  later  she  went  to  Boston,  and  did  a  little 
shopping  which  she  said  had  been  waiting  much  too  long. 
She  declared  herself  almost  strong  again. 

"If  Andrew  were  here,"  said  her  aunt,  "you  know 
you  could  not  stir  one  step." 

Kitty  laughed. 

"I  am  very  naughty,  of  course;  you  must  tell  him. 
Dear  Andrew,  how  we  all  miss  him !  But  he  will  be 
here  by  the  end  of  the  week." 

On  Andrew's  return  Mrs.  Edgerly  invited  Mrs.  Barney 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  85 

to  dinner,  and,  naturally,  Mr.  Holden  also.  Jack  had 
not  been  to  the  house  during  Mason's  absence,  but  it 
was  not  on  account  of  this  that  he  had  staid  away.  He 
had  wound  up  some  severe  cogitations  by  calling  himself 
a  fool,  and  determining  not  to  be  one  any  longer,  and  the 
use  of  the  epithet  had  seemed  to  have  some  connection 
with  his  visits  to  Mrs.  Edgerly's  house. 

But  now  he  must  go  with  his  aunt,  and  he  resigned 
himself  to  this  duty  with  great  cheerfulness. 

A  short  time  before  their  arrival,  Bertha  announced  that 
she  had  encountered  Mr.  Dewey  in  her  walk  the  day  be 
fore,  and  had  asked  him  to  meet  them,  thinking  it  would 
be  pleasant  for  everybody. 

' '  I  don't  know  what  reason  you  had  to  think  that, " 
cried  Kitty,  thoroughly  angry.  ' '  I  wish  you  would  not 
interfere. " 

"Interfere!  Interfere,  indeed!  Grandmamma,  haven't 
I  as  much  right  as  Kitty  Mason,  or  anybody,  to  invite 
people  to  this  house  ?  " 

"Why,  yes,  my  dear,"  answered  the  old  lady.  "Kitty 
doesn't  mean  that.  But,  you  see,  Mr.  Dewey  is  peculiar. 
I'm  afraid  Mrs.  Barney  won't  enjoy  him,  and  I  know  Mr. 
Holden  won't." 

' '  Bertha  will,  and  that's  enough, "  said  Kitty  under  her 
breath.  But  the  next  moment  she  remembered  that  the 
trial  would  have  some  alleviation.  Bertha,  as  she  told 


86  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

her,  must  look  to  it  that  Mr.  Dewey  was  well  entertained. 
That  would  furnish  her  with  occupation  enough,  while 
Jenny  Grierson,  who. had  that  day  returned  from  a  short 
visit  to  a  school  friend  near  Lowton,  would  be  able  to 
give  all  her  attention  to  the  other  guests.  Kitty  was  never 
indifferent  to  Bertha's  interests,  but  if  the  girl  would 
make  foolish  moves  in  spite  of  her,  it  was  comfortable  to 
have  a  docile  pupil  at  hand  to  fill  up  the  deficiencies — to 
fill  them  permanently,  if  fate  would  be  so  generous. 

Mrs.  Barney  seized  upon  Helen  in  the  few  minutes  be 
fore  dinner. 

"Miss  Bell,"  she  said,  "come  and  sit  here  on  the 
sofa  beside  me,  I  want  to  see  how  you  look;  I  scarcely 
know,  it  is  so  long  since  we  have  met.  My  dear,"  she 
added  half  aside,  "I  thought,  and  I  told  Jack,  that  I 
should  see  a  great  deal  of  you  this  winter.  But  it  hasn't 
turned  out  so.  Why  don't  you  come  to  see  me  ? " 

"I  will  come,   Mrs.   Barney." 

Helen  noticed  that  Kitty  smiled  as  she  caught  her 
answer. 

' '  Yes,  I  will  come  very  soon, "  she  reiterated  audibly. 

Mr.  Dewey  had  here  the  tribute  of  a  few  flowery  words 
to  offer  to  Miss  Bell. 

At  dinner  H  olden  sat  next  Miss  Grierson,  who  to-day 
looked  more  fresh  and  bright  than  ever.  Her  simplicity 
pleased  him;  yet  there  was  a  demureness  in  her  eyes, 


:A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  87 

and  her  attitude,  that  gave  promise  of  a  fair  amount  of 
fun.  Helen  was  opposite,  with  Mrs.  Barney  on  her 
right.  She  gave  Mr.  Dewey  leisure  .to  devote  a  good 
share  of  his  attention  to  Bertha  on  his  other  hand,  yet 
she  seemed  to  enjoy  talking  with  him.  She  was  un 
usually  animated,  and  more  than  once  by  some  keen 
retort  demolished  his  arguments  in  a  way  which  was 
far  from  according  with  his  theories  of  the  relative  powers 
of  masculine  and  feminine  minds.  But  he  perceived  it 
was  only  about  trifles,  and  that  it  was  because  he  had 
not  really  considered  her  a  foeman  worthy  of  his  steel; 
and  so  solacing  himself,  he  "smiled  superior  down" 
upon  her,  or  tried  to  do  it. 

Jenny  Grierson's  conversation  was  not  so  engrossing 
as  to  prevent  Holden  from  taking  in  the  situation  of 
affairs  opposite  him,  and  once  he  found  himself  and 
Andrew  glancing  cautiously  at  one  another,  and  smiling 
in  a  way  that  showed  an  amount  of  mutual  understand 
ing  which,  when  he  came  to  think  of  it,  surprised  him. 

Mrs.  Barney  glanced  about,  here  and  there,  pecked 
at  the  dainties  on  her  plate,  and,  in  her  good  humored 
way,  at  everybody's  store  of  personalities,  with  an  air 
of  thorough  enjoyment.  She  inquired  if  Kitty's  maiden 
name  was  Grierson,  and  on  learning  that  it  was,  remem 
bered  having  once  met  people  of  that  name  in  New 
Hampshire.  She  was  spending  the  summer  roaming 


88  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'. 

about  there,  and  in  the  course  of  her  travels  went  to  a 
village  where  she  had  planned  to  stay  a  month.  It 
turned  out  that  she  had  not  done  so,  but  she  remem 
bered  the  passing  through  it,  and,  among  other  places, 
recollected  a  little  cottage  where  she  was  told  she  might 
perhaps  find  board. 

' '  It  was  a  mite  of  a  place, "  said  Mrs.  Barney,  ' '  but 
as  pretty  as  could  be,  and  the  people  were  very  nice.  I 
should  have  staid  with  them  if  I  had  stopped  at  all. 
I  have  just  remembered,  hearing  yours,  that  their  name  was 
Grierson,  too.  I  wonder  if  they  were  relatives  of  yours?" 

"My  aunt  always  imagines  that  people  of  the  same 
name  must  be  next  of  kin,"  interposed  Jack  quickly. 
"She  is  archaeological  about  it" 

"That  is,  you  mean  she  thinks  we've  all  just  come 
out  of  the  ark  ? "  said  Jenny. 

"No,  my  dear,"  said  the  lady,  "not  the  ark,  the 
country,  and  a  beautiful  country,  too.  Then,  you  don't 
know  these  people  ? "  she  said  to  Kitty,  who  was  obliged 
to  turn  at  her  direct  address,  although  she  had  just  be 
come  interested  in  Mr.  Holden's  explanation. 

Everybody  now  was  waiting  for  her  to  speak,  for  Mrs. 
Barney's  reiterated  question  across  the  table  had  caught 
the  attention  of  all.  Andrew  was  smiling  at  her. 

"I  lived  in  New  Hampshire,  and  in  the  country  when 
a  child,"  she  said. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  89 

"Yes,  and  this  was  in  Notham.  Was  it  there  you 
lived? " 

"I  did  for  a  time." 

"Why,  then  it  must  have  been  you.  Oh,  it  was 
years,  and  years,  and  years  ago." 

' '  Not  too  many,  please,  Mrs.  Barney, "  drawled 
Andrew. 

The  lady  looked  at  him  in  surprise,  until  a  new  light 
dawned  over  her  face. 

"Oh,  well,  I  don't  mean  that.  I  mean  only  the 
right  number  to  match  with  her  now.  Yes,  it  must  have 
been  you,  Mrs.  Mason;  such  a  lovely  little  girl  of  about 
eight  or  ten,  barefooted,  like  the  famous  Maud  Muller, 
with  a  little  old-fashioned  red  calico  dress,  and  an  old 
shaker  bonnet,  not  on  your  head,  but  tied  by  the  strings 
and  hanging  on  your  neck  behind.  You  had  been  pick 
ing  blue-berries,  and  were  going  to  carry  your  little  pail 
round  to  the  people.  I  bought  them  all  of  you,  though, 
to  help  out  our  luncheon  as  we  drove  through  the  woods. 
Oh,  I  thought  you  were  the  very  loveliest,  dainty  little 
creature  I  had  ever  seen  in  my  life." 

' '  I  thought  she  was  a  fair  specimen  of  a  little  country 
girl,  Mrs.  Barney,  when  I  saw  her,"  laughed  Andrew, 
"and  that  was  years  afterward,  'years,  and  years,'  as 
you  say." 

If  Kitty  had  ever  permitted   herself  the  use  of  slang, 


90  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

she  would  have  inwardly  affirmed  she  ' '  owed  Mrs.  Bar 
ney  one. "  As  it  was,  the  sentiment  in  all  its  force  silent 
ly  reigned  in  her  heart. 

Mrs.  Barney  had  reminiscences  with  her  hostess;  for 
while  visiting  in  Lowton,  during  the  lifetime  of  her  sis 
ter,  Holden's  mother,  she  had  met  Mrs.  Edgerly.  She 
had  them  also  with  Helen,  although  acquaintance  with 
her  dated  only  from  the  night  of  the  storm.  As  to  the 
others  who  were  strangers,  she  seemed  resolved  to  have, 
in  future,  reminiscences  of  them  also.  It  was  in  vain  her 
nephew  attempted  more  than  once  to  parry  her  direct 
though  unimportant  inquiries. 

"Well,  Jack,"  she  cried  once,  "why  in  the  world  don't 
you  let  people  answer  for  themselves  ?  I  know  they  would 
rather,  everybody  would.  Mr.  Dewey  can't  object  to  tell 
ing  me  if  his  mother  is  living. " 

Holden  desisted.  He  heard  Miss  Bell  talking  to  her 
at  intervals  in  tones  full  of  respectful  kindness;  there 
seemed  no  mockery  in  her  voice  then,  but  he  could  not 
listen  to  the  words,  for  Mrs.  Mason  spoke  to  him  fre 
quently.  Miss  Grierson  was  doing  her  part  well,  and 
Andrew  said  more  than  usual. 

After  dinner  Jenny  gave  them  a  Nocturne  of  Chopin's, 
and  other  pieces,  rendered  so  sympathetically  that  con 
versation  almost  entirely  ceased.  Bertha  followed.  Her 
execution  was  fully  equal  to  Jenny's,  but  her  style  was 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  91 

so  unemotional  that  one  needed  only  to  recollect  to  mur 
mur  applause  at  the  end  of  the  brilliant  performance. 

"I  suppose  music  is,  after  all,  the  first  of  the  fine 
arts,"  said  Mr.  Dewey,  standing  near  Helen's  chair, 
with  one  hand  nervously  fingering  the  flowers  in  a  vase 
upon  the  mantel. 

"  You  _ said  that  to  the  wrong  person,  Mr.  Dewey," 
cried  Kitty.  "Miss  Bell  doesn't  play,  she  paints." 

The  young  man  looked  so  crestfallen  that  Helen 
laughed. 

"I  am  as  fond  of  music  as  any  one,"  she  said;  "and 
the  arts  are  not  jealous,  they  are  sisters;  each  gains  from 
the  other's  advancement." 

"I  am  very  fond  of  painting,"  said  Kitty,  "but  I 
think  poetry  is  really  the  highest  of  the  arts." 

' '  I  believe  it  is  the  poets  who  have  exercised  the 
greatest  influence  over  men,"  said  Holden.  "See,  for 
instance,  what  the  Hebrew  element  did  for  Europe  in 
the  dark  ages.  Historians  have  hardly  begun  to  ac 
knowledge  it,  but  the  Jews  were  the  beacon  lights  of 
that  night,  when  the  Eastern  Empire  was  broken  up; 
they  carried  the  Promethean  fire  everywhere." 

"They  are  great  musicians,"  said  Jenny. 

"Yes,  composers  and  performers  both.  But  they  are 
preeminent  in  poetry." 

"Indeed!"  sneered  Mr.   Dewey. 


92  A    LAZY  MAN^S    WORK. 

"Yes,"  answered  Holden  earnestly,  "we  have  noth 
ing  to  be  compared  with  what  their  poets  have  given  us." 

' '  What  poets  ?  "  asked  Dewey. 

"Isaiah,  David,  and  Job.  There  is  no  race  like  the 
Hebrews  for  sustained  power." 

"And  yet,  Jack,"  cried  Mrs.  Barney,  "how  funny  it 
is,  we  always  think  of  the  Jews  as  peddlers  and  old-clothes 
men." 

"Undoubtedly  they  were  masters  of  their  art,"  said 
Mr.  Dewey  answering  Holden  with  a  certain  gracious 
condescension. 

Mrs.  Edgerly  laid  down  her  knitting  to  look  at  the 
strange  person  who  was  calling  these  inspired  men  ' '  mas 
ters  of  their,  art. " 

"Art!"  she  repeated,  an  accent  of  reproof  mingling 
with  the  wonder  in  her  tones.  "If  they  seem  to  have 
art,  it  is  because  what  they  say  is  exactly  true." 

"Yes,  you  are  right,"  said  Holden  after  a  short  silence. 

Helen's  lips,  which  had  parted  for  speech,  closed  at 
this  answer,  and  Kitty,  who  had  shrunk  into  herself 
awaiting  some  sign  of  public  opinion,  and  dreading 
to  share  the  obliquy  of  being  considered  old-fashioned, 
smiled  encouragingly  upon  her  aunt,  while  Mr.  Dewey 
looked  down  at  her  with  an  expression  he  intended 
should  imply  pitying  indulgence. 

"Our   present   means    of  rapid   communication,    our 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  93 

railroads,  telegraphs,  and  telephones  have  done  and  are 
doing  so  much  for  us,"  he  began,  addressing  himself  to 
Andrew;  "they  are  making  the  discoveries  of  science  so 
wide-spread,  that  eventually  all  people  must  be  freed 
from  the  servitude  of  tradition." 

"What  especial  discoveries  of  science  are  you  think 
ing  of,  Mr.  Dewey,  that  seem  to  you  able  to  under 
mine  our  faith?" 

There  was  almost  the  ring  of  a  challenge  in  Helen's 
voice.  She  respected  the  results  of  science  as  much  as 
did  Mr.  Dewey,  and  was  far  better  able  to  appreciate 
the  devotion  of  the  workers  and  the  benefits  derived 
from  their  labors.  But  she  drew  a  line  between  facts 
established  and  speculations  which,  at  best,  are  only 
the  erratic  efforts  of  men  confessedly  in  a  Cretan  laby 
rinth;  and  she  saw  that  this  young  man  represented  a 
class  of  minds  of  light  caliber,  who  believe  themselves 
exponents  of  advanced  thought  when  they  assert  as  dog 
mas  the  theories  that  their  betters  have  put  forth  as 
questions. 

"  Ah  !  well, "  responded  Mr.  Dewey,  ' '  I  don't  know 
that  I  can  state  it  for  you  precisely  in  vernacular." 

"Don't  try,"  said  Andrew;  "give  it  to  us  in  scientific 
terms;  it  will  be  much  more  impressive." 

Mr.  Dewey  went  on,  ignoring  this  interruption,  and 
still  speaking  to  Helen: 


94  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  The  gist  of  the  matter  is, "  he  said,  ' '  that  the  body 
is  composed  of  chemical  elements,  and  dissolves  into 
them  again,  and  there  is  the  end  of  it.  What  we  call 
'  mind '  is  merely  the  electric  result  of  the  peculiar  com 
binations  of  these  atoms,  and  those  combinations  once 
destroyed  can  never  be  combined  with  the  same  result 
again.  Facts  are  hard  logic.  With  ladies  it  is  different, 
but  learned  men  are  always  incredulous  about  the  su 
pernatural.  It  has  been  so  in  all  ages." 

"Ye-es,"  said  Andrew,  "that's  just  it.  Take  the  fif 
teenth  century.  It  had  its  great  scientific  lights.  There 
they  sat  in  their  wisdom  at  Salamanca." 

"At  Salamanca,"  cried  Kitty,  "the  very  focus  of  cul 
ture  !  " 

"Ye-es.  And  there  these  solid  men  of  learning  sat 
in  judgment  upon  the  visionary  Columbus,  and  argued 
against  him  with  scientific  accuracy.  He  had  never  been 
to  that  other  hemisphere;  if  he  sailed  to  the  edge  of  the 
world,  he  would  drop  off  into  space.  They  proved  that 
his  theory  would  make  men  walk  on  the  earth  like  flies 
on  a  ceiling,  and  that  his  idea  was  an  absurdity.  And 
they  sent  him  away  to  learn  the  laws  of  nature.  They 
argued  well  enough,  but  they  left  gravitation  out  of  the 
premises.  So  their  supernatural  turned  out  only  a  part 
of  nature  they  didn't  know.  They  theorized  as  we  do 
when  we  leave  out  God  to  whom  the  universe  gravitates." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  95 

"How  beautiful  the  human  countenance  grows  with 
the  light  of  enthusiasm  upon  it,"  thought  Holden,  "and 
hers  is  beyond  anything  I  ever  saw.  I  wish  Mason 
would  talk  on  so  forever.  What  strange  inconsistencies 
in  her  character — admiration  for  what  is  high,  and  at 
the  same  time  a  determined  pursuit  of  really  sordid 
ends. " 

' '  You  don't  mean,  surely, "  cried  Mr.  Dewey,  ' '  that 
what  you  call  faith,  and  all  these  creeds  floating  about 
the  world,  have  done  any  civilizing  for  us  ?  Do  you 
really  advance  that  idea?" 

"Creeds  are  narrow,"  said  Holden,  "like  all  'isms,' 
not  excepting  the  scientific  and  liberal.  But  the  civil 
ization  that  is  leading  the  world,  is  the  service  of  hu 
manity.  Science  saves  a  man's  muscles,  makes  life  more 
comfortable  to  him,  and  widens  his  opportunities.  It 
has  been  said  that  Christianity  opposes  science,  but  this 
is  not  so.  The  opposition  comes  from  the  spirit  of 
ecclesiasticism.  The  speculations  of  science  began  with 
the  ages;  Christianity  has  made  it  a  living  power,  to 
open  up  new  lands  and  homes  to  peoples  who  were 
once  too  low  for  hope." 

"Yes,"  said  Helen  softly,  "for  humanity  became  the 
garment  of  a  king  when  Christ  wrapped  it  about  Him 
self.  Many  who  deny  His  authority  are  following  Him 
to-day,  and  believing  on  Him  for  His  works'  sake.'" 


96  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"And  it  has  brought  down  the  price  of  ermine  aston 
ishingly  of  late,"  remarked  Andrew. 

"I  wonder  why  there  never  were  any  painters  and 
sculptors  among  the  Jews,"  said  Kitty,  who  had  been 
using  her  eyes  during  her  silence,  and  was  not  sorry  to 
turn  the  conversation  to  less  inspiring  themes. 

"You  remember  they  were  not  allowed  to  practice 
those  arts  in  the  service  of  their  religion,"  explained  Mr. 
Dewey,  "and  that  is  the  beginning  of  the  greater  part  of 
artistic  efforts;  it  seems  to  have  a  stimulating  effect  upon 
budding  genius,"  and  he  glanced  at  Helen  with  a  pat 
ronizing  smile. 

"How  strange  they  were  forbidden,"  Kitty  said. 

"No,"  answered  her  husband.  "The  Jews  were  called 
to  establish  a  spiritual  worship.  Their  God  must  not  be 
debased  in  their  eyes  to  a  level  with  idols.  He  was  the 
inimitable  Source  of  the  ideal  and  the  spiritual." 

"At  any  rate  I  am  glad  we  are  allowed  painting 
and  sculpture,"  said  Kitty;  "we  have  never  pervert 
ed  it." 

"Before  you  say  that,"  replied  Andrew,  "go  into  the 
churches  all  over  the  Continent,  and  see  people  kneeling, 
and  saying  their  prayers,  at  the  shrines  of  pictured  saints, 
and  wax  dolls  dressed  with  gewgaws." 

"Just  hear,  Jack;  that's  exactly  it — 'wax  dolls,'  'gew 
gaws,'  oh  thousands  of  them  !  Only,  some  have  elegant 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  97 

jewelry  on,   Mr.   Mason.     They  are  'gewgaws'  though, 
sure  enough,   if  you  are  going  to  worship  them." 

"But  in  spite  of  all  the  false  uses  to  which  they 
can  be  put,  the  arts  are  the  resources  of  life,"  cried 
Kitty. 

Jenny  Grierson  flushed,  and  puckered  her  lips  a  little, 
and  Mason  uttered  a  quiet  laugh. 

Holden  went  home  that  night  carrying  with  him  the 
recollection  of  Helen's  face  lit  up  with  its  enthusiasm. 
As  if  to  make  atonement,  she  had  grown  cold  enough 
afterward  when  the  discussion  was  over,  but  the  en 
thusiasm  had  been  there  unmistakably.  He  still  saw 
before  him  her  eyes  as  they  had  shown  large  and  dark 
with  dilated  pupils,  and  clear  as  if  the  light  of  the  soul 
was  shining  through  them.  In  his  fancy  he  saw  this 
look  of  hers,  until  sleep  came  to  him;  but  he  could 
not  believe  it — he  argued  that  her  beauty  and  his  own 
imagination  must  have  given  something  of  the  expression 
he  had  feasted  his  eyes  upon,  when  she  was  too  absorbed 
in  listening  to  Mason  to  be  conscious  of  his  gaze. 

But  had  she  really  been  unconscious  of  it?  Or  was 
this  only  a  part  of  the  whole  ?  He  had  seen  expressions 
of  most  passionate  emotion  come  over  the  faces  of  great 
actresses  when  the  role  they  were  playing  demanded  it 
He  scorned  the  suggestion.  Yet,  he  did  not  drive  it 
away;  he  knew  enough  of  Helen  to  admit  its  possibility. 


98  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

He  interrupted  his  cogitations  to  tell  himself  angrily 
that  he  was  a  fool,  which  was  perfectly  true,  but  he  could 
not  quite  determine  whether  it  was  through  believing  in 
her,  or  not  believing. 

At  last  he  resolved  to  keep  on  the  safe  side. 

But  which  was  that? 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"  TTTTTY,"  called  a  voice  in  the  upper  hall  the  next 

•"*     morning,    "are  you  in  your  room?" 

"Yes,  come  in." 

Bertha,  with  her  arm  in  Jenny  Grierson's,  stood  in 
the  doorway. 

"There  is  a  gentleman  down-stairs  to  see  you/' 

Kitty  turned  to  her  suddenly,  the  lace  she  was  folding 
fluttering  in  her  hands. 

"Who  is  it?" 

"I  don't  know.  Here  is  his  card,  I  took  it  from 
Nora,  on  the  stairs.  '  Rufus  Knight ! '  I  never  heard  of 
him. " 

"What  sort  of  looking  person  is  he?  Did  either  of 
you  see  him  ?  " 

Kitty's  hands  were  still  a  little  nervous  as  she  arranged 
one  or  two  things  in  her  room  before  going  down. 

"Yes,  I  did,  Aunt  Kitty.  I  confess  to  peeping  over 
the  banisters  as  he  came  into  the  hall.  The  doors  on 


100  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

both  sides  were  open,  and  I  had  a  good  view  of  him. 
He  is  young,  and  I  should  say  he  is  rather  handsome." 

' '  Don't  stay  here  picking  up  things,  Kitty;  run  down 
and  find  out.  Jenny  and  I  are  dying  of  curiosity." 

' '  Do  try  to  want  us  for  something  or  other  while  he's 
there,"  laughed  Jenny. 

"Where  is  Helen,   Bertha?" 

"I'm  sure  I  don't  know.  What  matter?  In  her 
room,  probably,  sketching  as  usual.  She  generally 
spends  the  morning  at  it,  and  it  seems  to  me  she  has 
been  worse  than  ever  for  the  past  few  days." 

' '  You  have  noticed  that  ? " 

"Yes;  I  spoke  of  it  to  her,  and  she  told  me  at  last 
that  something  she  had  counted  upon  a  great  deal  this 
winter  had  to  be  given  up,  and  she  was  obliged  to  work 
harder.  I  suppose  something  of  hers  didn't  sell,  poor  girl. " 

' ' '  Poor  girl ! ' "  echoed  Kitty  indignantly,  then  added, 
with  a  sudden  change  of  tone  into  contemptuous  indif 
ference,  "She'll  do  well  enough." 

"Don't  be  a  goose,  Bertha,"  she  said  a  moment  after 
ward.  "It  was  not  selling  any  picture  that  she  had  so 
counted  upon  this  winter.  She  has  failed  in  an  attempt 
much  more  important  than  that." 

"O  Aunt  Kitty,"  cried  Jenny,  catching  her  meaning, 
"I  can't  think  she  tried  that;  it  doesn't  seem  like  her. 
I  believe  in  Helen." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  IOI 

Kitty  turned  and  came  a  step  nearer  Jenny  with  sud 
den  fire  and  wildness  in  her  eyes,  as  if  the  slightest  op 
position  here  roused  a  tumult  of  feeling  that  threatened 
to  throw  her  mind  off  its  balance. 

Jenny  drew  back  in  silent  wonder;  and  in  an  instant 
Kitty  was  her  smiling  self  again. 

Her  niece  thought  this  thing  over  secretly  a  good  many 
times.  But  she  hoped  never  to  say  anything  to  bring 
back  that  look;  and,  then,  perhaps  she  did  not  consider 
it  very  necessary  that  Helen  should  succeed,  did  she  really 
have  any  such  scheme  as  Mrs.  Mason  insinuated. 

At  last  Kitty  went  down-stairs.  The  stranger  was 
looking  over  a  book  of  engravings  on  the  table.  He 
bowed  suavely  to  the  lady,  and  handed  her  a  folded  pa 
per  which  he  informed  her  was  a  letter  of  introduction 
from  her  dear  friends,  the  Delvilles.  He  smiled  at  her 
with  amused  scrutiny  as  he  did  so,  and  sinking  into 
Andrew's  favorite  chair,  sat  slapping  his  right  glove 
gently  on  his  knee  with  a  well-kept  white  hand,  and 
waiting  until  Mrs.  Mason  should  look  up  at  him  again. 

She  did  not  do  it  at  once.  Her  face  had  flushed 
deeply  on  reading  the  paper;  but  now  this  color  gave 
way  to  an  excited  pallor.  She  met  his  gaze,  and 
said, 

' '  This  is  all  very  satisfactory,  Mr.  Knight.  I  am  happy 
to  see  you.  I  am  sure  you  were  wise  to  come. " 


102  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"You  can't  dub  a  thing  wisdom,  Mrs.  Mason,  until 
it's  grown  up.  Sometimes  wise  appearing  children  turn 
out  fools,  after  all. " 

"Chance  enough  to  prove  this  one,"  said  Kitty  with 
a  shiver.  ' '  Meanwhile,  we  will  try  to  make  Lowton 
pleasant  to  you." 

Not  long  afterward  she  called  the  young  ladies,  to 
present  the  stranger  to  them. 

Jenny  and  Bertha  came  without  delay;  but  Helen 
begged  that  Mrs.  Mason  would  excuse  her  that  morning, 
for  she  was  very  busy  upon  work  that  must  be  sent  off 
the  next  day. 

Kitty  frowned,  and  glanced  at  her  visitor. 

"That  is  the  young  lady  guest  you  mentioned  just  now 
as  the  artist  ? "  he  inquired.  "  I  am  sorry  not  to  see 
ner;  but  genius  is  erratic,  and  I  have  a  presentiment  we 
shall  make  acquaintance  later.  I  am  too  well  enter 
tained  to  be  unhappy  over  her  non-appearance  this 
morning. " 

His  sweeping  bow  included  all  the  ladies  with  a  self- 
possession  Mr.  Dewey  would  have  envied.  Kitty  saw  his 
eyes  rest  upon  Bertha  with  smiling  curiosity,  and  then 
turn  to  Jenny. 

Kitty  was  very  cordial,  and  told  him  they  should  hope 
to  see  a  great  deal  of  him  while  he  was  in  Lowton,  ask 
ing  how  long  he  intended  to  remain  here. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  103 

Mr.  Knight  could  not  tell,  it  would  depend  upon  cir 
cumstances;  and  he  took  his  leave. 

"We  must  try  to  make  it  pleasant  for  this  stranger," 
she  said  when  he  had  gone,  adding  that  he  was  intro 
duced  to  her  by  people  she  should  be  sorry  to  displease. 

' '  Who  are  they  ? "  asked  Bertha.      ' '  Friends  of  yours  ? " 

"Yes,"  said  Kitty  after  a  slight  hesitation. 

"Who?" 

"Nobody  you  know." 

"How  odd!  I  thought  I  knew  who  all  your  friends 
were,  even  if  I  didn't  know  them  myself.  What's  the 
name  of  the  people  ? " 

"I  declare,  Bertha,  I  should  think  you  were  Mrs. 
Barney.  '  What  is  their  name  ? '  '  Where  do  they  live  ? " 
'  How  old  are  they  ? '  next.  What  are  you  making  such 
a  wonderment  out  of  nothing  for  ?  I  shall  not  tell  you, 
there  ! — to  teach  you  better.  And  there  is  his  letter  of 
introduction  gone  into  the  fire,  to  reward  your  curiosity. 

Bertha  sprang  forward  to  snatch  it  off  the  blazing 
log.  but  Kitty  and  the  flames  were  too  quick  for  her; 
the  one  held  back  her  hand  an  instant,  and  the  other 
caught  the  paper  and  whisked  it  up  the  chimney  in  a 
flash  and  down  upon  the  hearth  in  a  roll  of  quivering 
ashes.  Not  a  blackened  scrap  was  left  on  which  a  word 
could  be  deciphered,  and  Kitty  left  the  room  with  a 
laugh,  and  a  reminder  that  she  had  invited  Mr.  Knight  to 


104  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

look  in  upon  them  in  the  evening,  when  they  would  be 
all  together  and  he  might  find  others  at  the  house  whom 
he  would  enjoy  meeting. 

' '  It  seems  to  me  he  could  scarcely  happen  upon  an 
evening  when  somebody  wouldn't  be  here,"  said  Jenny, 
' '  unless  it's  very  bad  weather. " 

Kitty  looked  beaming. 

"We  do  make  it  pleasant  for  people." 

' '  I  suppose  she  thinks  it  is  all  her  doing, "  muttered 
Bertha  as  her  cousin  walked  out  of  hearing:  "but  we 
did  have  company  once  in  a  while  before  she  came.  I'll 
tell  you  what,  Jenny,  you  may  say  it  to  her  if  you  like, 
I  am  going  to  find  out  who  introduced  Mr.  Knight.  I 
don't  care  a  farthing  to  know,  but  she  shall  not  balk 
me.  I  will  ask  him  himself,  if  I  can't  get  at  it  any  other 
way.  But  probably  Andrew  will  know." 

' '  Don't  make  any  trouble,  Bertha.  " 

Bertha  looked  at  her  in  surprise. 

"Why,  Jenny,  you  don't  mean  she  won't  tell  him 
all  about  it  ?  What  is  the  matter  ?  Kitty  was  so 
queer  !  " 

"I  think  she  was  only  annoyed  because  you  would 
question  her  when  she  was  out  of  sorts." 

' '  What  is  she  '  out  of  sorts '  about  ?  " 

"Nothing,  that  I  know  of.  But  don't  you  remember 
the  old  saying,  that  a  person  gets  out  of  bed  in  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  105 

morning  wrong  foot  foremost,  and  goes  about  ill-suited 
all  day." 

"Kitty's  done  that  a  good  many  times  lately,  then. 
She's  ill-natured  enough  when  we're  alone;  she's  as  sweet 
as  sugar  candy  to  outsiders." 

"Sometimes  people  are  troubled  and  can't  say  any- 
ihing  about  it,  and  it  shows  in  this  way.  I  thought 
you  got  on  nicely  together  generally." 

' '  Yes,  we  do.  Kit  is  very  good,  of  course,  and  peo 
ple  all  like  her  ever  so  much.  I  was  only  provoked  for 
the  minute." 

"Miss  Piqued  Curiosity?"  laughed  Jenny. 

Bertha  laughed,  too,  and  the  slight  annoyance  was  over; 
but  it  served  to  make  her  remember  that  there  was  some 
thing  odd  in  the  way  Mr.  Knight  had  been  introduced 
to  them.  It  did  not  prejudice  her  against  him,  how 
ever,  it  only  roused  her  interest. 

He  came  that  evening  and  found  all  the  family.  He 
seemed  especially  pleased  with  Mason,  and  talked  with 
him  for  some  time,  until,  seeing  a  place  vacant  beside 
Miss  Bell,  he  crossed  the  room  and  played  the  agreeable 
to  her;  with  good  effect,  it  seemed,  for  Helen  talked 
and  laughed  gayly;  and  once  he  caught  one  of  her  sunny 
smiles  which  impressed  him  a  good  deal. 

In  a  short  time  Knight  was  quite  at  home  in  Mrs. 
Mason's  family  circle.  He  paid  Helen  marked  atten- 


106  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

tion;  and,  after  the  insinuation  of  the  other  morning, 
both  Jenny  and  Bertha  understood  why  Kitty  appeared 
so  well  satisfied  with  this. 

But  there  was  something  strange  about  her;  she  seemed 
thoroughly  at  rest  very  seldom,  and  was  best  pleased  when 
Mr.  Knight  was  talking  with  Helen,  or  gone  walking  or 
driving  with  the  young  ladies.  She  always  contrived,  if 
possible,  to  have  Helen  with  him. 

About  this  time  she  changed  her  place  at  table.  When 
Bertha  wonderingly  demanded  the  reason,  she  explained 
that  the  glare  from  the  opposite  window  was  unpleasant. 

"How  strange  you  never  minded  that  before,"  her 
aunt  said. 

Kitty  laughed,  and  answered  that  she  had  just  waked 
up  to  it,  and  the  thing  was  forgotten. 

Now  she  sat  beside  Helen. 

A  week  after  this  she  came  down-stairs  one  morning 
and  found  Jenny  seated  at  the  piano,  her  hands  fallen 
on  the  keys,  her  face  upturned,  with  a  smile  and  two 
charming  little  dimples,  to  some  one  beside  her  who 
had  been  picking  out  another  piece  of  music  and  was 
placing  it  before  her,  bending  down  as  he  did  so  to  look 
into  the  bright,  blue  eyes. 

"Why,  Jenny,"  she  exclaimed,  "I  thought  you  had 
gone  to  drive  with  your  uncle !  " 

"No;   he   took    Helen    instead,    because   there  was  a 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  107 

view  he  wanted  to  show  her  while  the  sleighing  was  good 
enough  to  drive  to  the  very  top  of  the  hill.  I'm  doing 
what  you  asked  us  all,  Aunt  Kitty — trying  to  make  it 
pleasant  to  Mr.  Knight.  I  told  him  you  would  be  down 
very  soon." 

"Yes,  I  was  finishing  my  mending." 

' '  I  know  you  never  like  to  be  disturbed  until  it's 
done,"  said  Jenny.  "Mr.  Knight,  will  you  sing  one 
verse  of  that  song  over  again  ?  I  want  my  aunt  to  hear 
your  voice." 

"With  great  pleasure,  if  Miss  Grierson  will  help  me 
through  it." 

Kitty  watched  her  niece  and  the  stranger,  but  she  saw 
only  a  common  interest  in  music,  and  an  expression  of 
politeness  in  each  face.  Mr.  Knight  was  a  very  good- 
looking  young  man,  somewhat  under  medium  height,  but 
with  a  slight,  well-proportioned  figure.  He  was  full  of 
keen  observation,  and,  as  Kitty  heard  that  morning,  he 
had  a  rich  voice.  When  he  was  discussed,  Bertha  frankly 
declared  him  ' '  elegant, "  and  Jenny  smiled  in  a  demure 
silence  that  might  mean  endorsement,  or  otherwise. 
Helen,  when  questioned,  answered  with  cool  indefinite- 
ness,  until,  as  he  had  left  the  house  one  evening,  Kitty 
pressed  her  for  her  opinion. 

"Yes,  he  is  pleasant,"  she  said  in  answer,  "but  he 
overdoes  it  a  little.  His  manners  are  very  fine,  but  he 


108  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

hasn't  grown  accustomed  to  them,  and  he  and  they  don't 
quite  harmonize.  I  shouldn't  have  said  this,  Mrs.  Ma 
son,  if  you  had  not  insisted  upon  my  speaking." 

Kitty  looked  blank  for  a  moment,    and  very  pale. 

Nobody  agreed  with  Helen,  however,  unless  Andrew's 
sleepy  smile  were  to  be  so  interpreted. 

"You're  altogether  too  fastidious,  Miss  Helen,"  he 
said.  "You'll  never  get  on  well  in  the  world  by  that 
means. " 

Kitty  affirmed  to  the  others  that  Helen  had  been  rude 
because  the  gentleman  was  her  friend. 

"Nonsense,  my  dear,"  said  Mrs.  Edgerly;  "Helen  is 
not  that  kind  of  girl." 

"You  know  a  great  deal  about  her,  don't  you,  Aunt 
Bertha  ? " 

"Yes,  I  do;  I  know  the  blood  that  runs  in  her  veins; 
and,  generally,  that's  as  much  information  as  you  need 
about  any  body." 

"  Perhaps — generally." 

' '  Kitty  Mason,  what  do  you  mean  ? " 

Kitty  gave  no  other  answer  than  a  significant  smile. 

"I  insist  upon  your  telling  me  at  once;  the  girl  is 
under  my  roof,  and  I  won't  have  her  maligned.  If 
you've  anything  to  say  that  I  don't  see,  and  ought  to 
be  told,  say  it,  by  all  means;  but  I  won't  have  slurs  and 
insinuations  made  behind  people's  backs.  Don't  you 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  109 

know  the  meanness  of  them?  And  almost  always," 
continued  the  old  lady  growing  angry,  "it's  because  a 
person  is  afraid  to  be  above  board." 

"I'm  not  afraid  of  anything,"  said  Kitty,  "but — " 

"'But' — what  is  it?  Have  you  anything  to  say 
against  Helen  ?  If  you  have,  say  it  out.  She  is  under 
my  protection,  and  I  say  I  won't  have  spiteful  insinua 
tions  about  her." 

"Much  good  your  protection  will  do  her,  you  will 
see,"  muttered  Kitty,  as  she  swept  out  of  the  room. 

The  next  time  Mr.  Knight  called,  Bertha  forgot  she 
had  not  sent  word  to  Mrs.  •  Mason  of  his  being  there,  and 
Kitty  found  the  two  in  most  friendly  colloquy  over  a  set 
of  illustrations  of  Shakespeare.  It  reassured  her.  She  re 
solved  not  to  misunderstand  him  in  future,  for  she  saw 
that  she  might  trust  him  with  perfect  safety. 

The  winter  was  wearing  away;  it  was  March,  and 
the  weather  was  more  mild  than  March  weather  usually 
is.  Several  entertainments,  though  on  a  smaller  scale, 
had  followed  Holden's  party,  and  Kitty  and  Bertha  were 
now  anxiously  debating  what  they  could  offer  which 
should  be  better  than  all  that  had  preceded  it,  not  only 
in  brilliancy,  but  in  originality  of  invention. 

' '  Why  not  give  a  fancy  dress  ball  ? "  suggested  Mrs. 
Edgerly,  as  they  sat  talking  around  the  breakfast-table 
one  morning,  arranging  plans  for  the  day,  as  is  the 


1 10  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

custom  when  the  weightier  subject  of  viands  has  been 
discussed. 

But  Mrs.  Mason  demurred.  There  had  been  one  in 
Lowton  only  last  winter. 

The  flash  of  pleasure  which  had  come  into  Helen's 
face  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's  words  died  out. 

"No  matter  for  that,"  said  Andrew,  "it  is  good 
enough  to  repeat.  There  is  one  recommendation  about 
a  thing  of  this  kind — it  sets  everybody's  wits  to  work, 
and  everybody  does  something  to  help  on  its  success. 
The  more  practice  one  has,  the  better  one  does  it.  You 
provide  the  rooms  and  the  supper,  but  the  'feast  of 
reason,  flow  of  soul/  and  all  that,  the  guests  bring 
with  them.  It's  the  right  way.  People  always  like  best 
the  things  they  have  to  work  hardest  for,"  he  added  smil 
ing  mischievously,  as  he  settled  himself  in  the  most  com 
fortable  attitude  his  chair  permitted.  "A  fancy  dress 
ball,  by  all  means,  Kitty.  Aunt  Bertha  and  I  will  put 
our  veto  on  everything  else." 

Mrs.  Mason  was  pleased  to  see  her  husband  so  much 
interested,  and  yielded  the  point  with  a  good  grace. 
Bertha  had  already  been  half  inclined  to  accept  the 
suggestion. 

Helen's  eager  look  had  not  been  Mason's  only  rea 
son  for  his  decision.  "Although  on  pleasure  "he  "was 
bent,"  he  "had  a  frugal  mind."  He  had  not  been 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  Ill 

satisfied  with  the  aspect  of  affairs  lately.  He  had  a 
genuine  liking  for  Helen  Bell,  and  at  one  time  had  be 
lieved  that  her  winter  in  Lowton  would  be  the  means 
of  opening  up  a  happy  life  to  her.  But  there  was  a  hitch 
somewhere. 

He  leisurely  sipped  his  second  cup  of  coffee  this  morn 
ing,  and  meditated  upon  the  fact  that  one  could  never 
tell  just  when  the  shining  hours  of  fate  would  come,  and 
that  it  was  best  to  be  always  prepared  to  take  advantage 
of  everything. 

Afterward  Kitty  saw  an  excellent  reason  for  approv 
ing  of  this  plan.  She  talked  the  party  over  with  Mr. 
Knight,  who  was,  of  course,  to  have  an  invitation. 

But  Bertha  still  maintained  that  something  was  the 
matter  with  Kitty,  she  was  so  queer,  and  had  taken  to 
gliding  about  in  all  sorts  of  places,  shod  with  silence,  and 
picking  up  all  kinds  of  trash,  and  trying  to  make  out 
what  it  was,  when  it  was  just  nothing.  More  than  once, 
too,  she  had  seen  her  throw  a  look  of  mysterious  mean 
ing  at  Knight;  what  the  meaning  was  she  could  not  pre 
tend  to  say,  but  there  was  something. 

Andrew  also  thought  there  was  something,  but  as  yet 
it  was  beyond  him,  too. 

Meanwhile,  preparations  for  the  party  went  on;  every 
body  was  by  turns  consulting  everybody  else  in  whispers, 
a  state  of  things  Mr.  Knight  seemed  to  enjoy  immensely. 


112  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Kitty  thought  he  appeared  to  choose  Helen  for  his  es 
pecial  confidant;  but  Helen  kept  her  own  counsel  with 
a  persistence  that  made  Kitty  inwardly  furious.  Even 
she  could  not  find  out  whom  the  girl  was  going  to 
personate. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

ON  the  night  of  the  ball,  figures  muffled  in  their  wraps 
ran  laughing  up  Mrs.  Edgerly's  broad  stairs,  and 
issuing  from  the  dressing-rooms  in  small  detachments,  a 
brilliant  assembly  gradually  filled  the  drawing-rooms. 

Mrs.  Edgerly,  standing  to  receive  her  guests,  opened 
her  mild  eyes  in  amazement  at  some  of  the  grotesque 
magnificence  that  shone  upon  her. 

' '  And  what  shall  I  call  you  ? "  she  asked  one  elaborate 
personage  when  the  announcement  of  several  names  to 
gether  had  bewildered  her. 

' '  Me,  madam  ? "  responded  a  high-pitched  voice  be 
longing  to  a  tall,  ancient  looking  figure  plentifully  bedi 
zened  with  silver  lace,  while  a  cocked  hat  was  held  osten 
tatiously  in  his  hand,  and,  to  Mrs.  Edgerly's  great  surprise, 
the  voice  broke  into  music,  and  sang: 

"Stick  close  to  your  desks  and  never  go  to  sea, 
And  you  all  may  be  rulers  of  the  queen's  navie." 


114  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Not  of  mine,"  cried  a  stern  voice,  and  as  if  to  make 
the  burlesque  still  more  absurd,  Queen  Elizabeth  came 
up  at  this  moment,  and  confronted  the  Lord  High  Ad 
miral  with  a  mien  of  royal  displeasure,  while  something 
too  much  like  a  snicker  marred  the  dignity  of  her  com 
panion,  the  courtly  Leicester. 

"What  a  convention  of  anachronisms,"  laughed  Maria 
Theresa  to  Andrew,  as  leaning  on  the  arm  of  her  arch 
enemy,  the  great  Frederick,  she  looked  about  her  leis 
urely. 

"Ye-es,  ye-es,"  said  Mason,  "and  everybody  seems 
to  be  in  the  spirit  of  the  part  to-night,"  and  he  glanced 
an  amused  comment  at  the  couple  before  him. 

"The  Seven  Years'  War  has  ended,"  returned  Fred 
erick;  "we  have  just  signed  the  Peace  of  Hubertsburg; 
this  is  perfectly  in  keeping." 

"I  suppose  Mrs.  Mason  is  in  costume?"  said  the 
empress. 

"Your  Imperial   Majesty  is  right." 

"Give  my  ' Imperial  Majesty'  a  hint  as  to  whom  she  is 
to-night — one  little  hint." 

But  Andrew  answered  that  so  warlike  a  sovereign  must 
know  how  imperative  it  was  that  a  soldier  should  never 
disobey  orders;  and  when  she  turned  to  Mrs.  Edgerly, 
that  lady  assured  her  she  had  promised  not  to  say  one 
word. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  115 

"There  are  anachronisms  here  indeed,  since  my 
will  has  no  power,"  sighed  the  empress,  moving  slowly 
away. 

Miranda  cordially  welcomed  Julius  Csesar,  whom  she 
declared  to  be  not  only  a  cotemporary,  but  also  in  the 
same  set  with  herself. 

Question  and  repartee,  jest  and  laughter,  were  heard 
on  all  sides.  Gradually,  the  company  fell  into  groups 
and  couples,  and  a  fire  of  cross-questionings  began,  over 
which  now  and  then  rang  a  triumphant  laugh,  as  through 
the  disguise  of  some  historical  character,  or  one  well 
known  in  the  world  of  fiction,  looked  the  eyes  of  an 
intimate  friend,  or  perhaps  of  one's  next  door  neighbor. 

But  a  greater  number  of  the  disguises  proved  impene 
trable  until  the  unmasking  came. 

Urania  was  standing  well  out  in  the  room,  watching 
some  excellent  personation  going  on  near  her.  She 
thought  she  recognized  Julius  Caesar,  and  so  she  ought, 
having  once  had,  no  doubt,  great  interest  in  the  con 
sultations  of  the  astrologers  concerning  his  star. 

She  was  dressed  in  blue  silk  covered  with  stars,  over 
which  was  thrown  a  dress  of  black  lace.  She  wore  a 
gold  globe  suspended  from  one  bracelet,  and  from  the 
other  a  smaller  globe  of  silver  with  circles  and  meridians 
on  it  to  represent  the  earth,  while  a  miniature  transit 
telescope,  a  circle,  and  other  astronomical  instruments 


Il6  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

in  gold  hung  at  her  side.  Judging  from  appearances, 
she  made  an  excellent  muse.  But  some  one  passing 
said  to  her  hastily,  in  a  whisper, 

"Don't  talk  much,   or  you'll  betray  yourself." 

"Never  fear,"  was  the  answer,  as  Urania  went  forward 
at  once,  and  in  a  moment  her  voice  was  heard  in  the 
group  she  had  been  watching. 

Uncle  Sam  stepped  out  of  one  of  Nast's  sketches,  and 
walked  across  the  room.  He  came  up  to  Urania, 
and  stood  surveying  her  with  approbation. 

' '  So  you're  the  Muse  of  Astronomy  ?  "  he  asked,  tak 
ing  out  a  huge  jack-knife  and  beginning  upon  a  piece 
of  willow  twig  with  which  he  had  provided  himself. 
"What  a  mighty  lot  you  must  know!" 

' '  Of  course, "  said  Urania. 

"Nice  big  place,  this  o'  mine,  to  study  the  stars  in; 
more  room  'n  you  had  when  you  lived  over  'n  that  speck 
of  a  Greece." 

' '  I  thought  I  lived  on  the  top  of  Mount  Oly  — • 
Parnassus. " 

"  Ye-es.  Mighty  blowy  kind  of  a  spot,  and  not  much 
of  a  height  after  you  got  up  there,  though  it  looks  a 
tough  climb  enough  when  you're  at  the  foot  of  it." 

"And  proves  much  too  tough  for  most  of  us,"  re 
marked  a  gray  domino  standing  near. 

"Guess  you're  'bout  right  there,  stranger." 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  1 17 

As  the  gray  domino  moved  away,  he  released  himself 
from  the  group  about  him  and  followed. 

' '  How  well   he  does  it !  "  said  Urania. 

' '  Who  is  he  ?  Give  us  some  clew, "  asked  a  wood- 
nymph  clad  in  brown,  on  which  were  sewed  quantities 
of  leaves  and  tiny  sprays  of  green. 

The  Muse  declared  she  could  not,  in  a  manner  which 
implied  knowledge  that  she  chose  not  to  reveal,  the  air 
she  meant  to  assume. 

Uncle  Sam  overtook  and  walked  beside  the  gray 
domino. 

He  entered  into  conversation  with  its  wearer,  his  eyes 
stealthily  attentive  to  every  gesture  of  his  companion  as 
he  questioned  in  excellent  vernacular,  and  busied  himself 
polishing  his  whistle,  deftly  catching  the  minute  shavings 
in  his  palm,  and  throwing  them  into  the  fire  as  he 
passed. 

After  a  time  he  and  the  domino  parted  by  mutual  con 
sent,  and  he  found  himself  much  interested  in  an  Italian 
countess  wearing  a  corn-colored  dress  richly  trimmed 
with  black. 

As  this  lady  turned  from  him,  a  voice  in  his  ear  said, 
with  soft  distinctness, 

' '  Fish,  art  thou  in  thy  duty  ?  " 

And  Beatrice — the  Beatrice  that  made  Benedict  an 
example,  or  a  warning,  to  all  succeeding  bachelors — 


Il8  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

stood  before  him.  It  was  she  who  had  advised  Urania 
not  to  talk  overmuch. 

' '  Have  you  learned  yet  ?  "  she  asked. 

"No,  I  can't  be  quite  sure,"  he  answered  without  his 
nasal  tone. 

"You  must  judge  by  the  voice  and,  I  suspect,  by  the 
color.  But  remember,  I  am  not  sure  of  the  last" 

' '  I  wish  you  were. " 

"So  do  I.  But  never  mind,  you  are  safe  any  time 
now,  and  the  sooner  the  better,  I  think." 

"Trust  to  me,  fair  Beatrice,"  as  Henry  the  Fourth  ac 
costed  him. 

Beatrice  instantly  began  a  running  fire  of  raillery  and 
repartee  upon  the  new-comer,  in  which  amusement  both 
quite  forgot  the  practical  gentleman  beside  them,  and 
wandered  off  together,  looking  back  when  at  the  end  of 
the  room,  to  find  that  Uncle  Sam  had  disappeared  among 
his  many  admirers. 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh  stood  talking  to  Mason.  On  the 
white  satin  lining  of  the  cloak  he  carried  over  his  arm, 
was  painted  a  distinct  muddy  splash. 

"She  has  puzzled  us  all,"  said  Andrew  aside.  "Kitty 
has  been  asking  me,  but  I  couldn't  tell  her.  If  you 
could  catch  sight  of  a  gold  bracelet  with  a  large  topaz 
pendent  by  a  chain,  you  might  be  quite  sure,  for  I  re 
member  that  perfectly." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  ny 

"So  do  I." 

"  But  it  is  not  likely  you  will  find  any  such  thing;  it  is 
too  marked." 

"We're  a  droll  looking  set,  though,"  cried  a  voice 
to  Mrs.  Edgerly.  "Do  you  know,  I  couldn't  for  my 
life  make  Jack  tell  me  what  he  was  going  to  be  ?  Oh, 
dear,  he  was  right  to  be  sure,  for  I've  betrayed  myself 
already,  and  I  dare  say  I  should  have  betrayed  him 
in  no  time.  But  don't  say,  my  dear,  who  Dame  For 
tune  is." 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  with  a  courtly  bow,  offered  Dame 
Fortune  his  arm  across  the  room.  She  accepted  it,  being 
utterly  at  a  loss  to  find  Jack.  The  stranger  condoled 
with  her,  and  told  her  to  take  her  perplexities  as  part  of 
the  joke. 

"I  am  greatly  at  a  loss  myself  to  find  some  one  I 
want,"  he  said. 

"I'm  so  sorry.  It's  not  the  person  you  came  with, 
is  it?" 

"Oh,   no;  I  recognize  her  easily  enough." 

' '  I  wonder, "  asked  Dame  Fortune,  ' '  if  you  know 
which  is  Miss  Bell  ?  I  would  like  to  meet  her  very  much. " 

"  I  do  not,  but  since  success  must  always  accompany 
you,  you  will  surely  find  her." 

The  lady  laughed  and  wished,  under  her  breath,  that 
Jack  could  hear  that. 


120  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

The  stranger  saw  Madame  Fortune  comfortably  settled, 
and  sauntered  away. 

He  moved  about  the  rooms  with  an  air  of  scrutiny 
which  he  did  not  lose  even  when  talking  with  the  dis 
tinguished  personages  that  accosted  him;  and  he  studied 
with  so  special  an  attention  the  figures  of  the  ladies  whose 
robes  shone  with  a  golden  gleam,  that  one  might  really 
have  accused  him  of  a  preference  for  the  hue  of  the 
precious  metal.  But  he  seemed  satisfied  with  none,  nor 
did  a  glimpse  of  any  bracelet  like  the  one  Andrew  had 
described  to  him  reward  his  search. 

Urania  intercepted  and  detained  him  for  some  time. 

As  he  left  her  he  caught  sight,  in  a  corner,  of  a  little 
lady  sitting  apart  in  pensive  attitude,  looking  as  if  she 
were  meditating  a  poem.  When  Sir  Walter  approached 
her  with  an  air  of  polite  deference,  she  turned  her  up 
lifted  face  to  him,  and  said  with  a  burst  of  irrepressible 
feeling, 

"I  have  such  a  passion  for  the  truth.  I  dote  upon  it 
so  that  I  go  away  into  solitude,  lest  some  of  the  petty 
wickednesses  about  me  should  jar  upon  my  refinement. 
Sit  here,  opposite  me,  before  the  firelight,  and  tell  me,  as  I 
fall  musing,  how  beautiful  I  am.  Philip  told  me  so,  and 
I  know  he  speaks  the  truth  always — to  Mercy  Philbrick. " 

"  How  dare  you  !  "  cried  Sir  Walter,  laughing  heartily. 
"How  dare  you,"  he  repeated,  "venture  to  jest  at  that 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  121 

skillful  presentation  of  sentimental  womanhood  with  a 
strong  graft  of  Boston  culture  ? "  And  he  seated  himself 
beside  Mercy. 

"Take  care,"  she  cried,  "your  cloak  is  brushing  my 
exquisite  basket  of  flowers.  They  are  my  trump  card,  I 
can't  have  anything  happen  to  them." 

"Trump  card,  indeed  !  That's  entirely  out  of  keeping, 
Madam  Mercy.  It  sounds  not  unlike  Miss  " 

With  a  little  cry  of  terror  the  figure  darted  away  from 
him.  He  rose  and  sauntered  on  again. 

The  scene  was  really  beautiful,  the  masquerading  being 
mostly  of  the  splendid  rather  than  the  grotesque  charac 
ter,  and  Sir  Walter  enjoyed  it  with  that  keen  relish  for 
beauty  which  always  distinguished  him.  As  he  stood 
half  in  reverie,  Julius  Caesar  came  up,  walking  beside  the 
gray  domino. 

"Pretty  fair,"  he  pronounced,  scanning  the  courtier's 
rich  dress  with  a  mild  admiration  well  spiced  with  criti 
cism;  "but  I  doubt  whether  that  is  the  exact  cut  of  the 
Elizabethan  boot." 

"Julius  Caesar  is  naturally  versed  in  antiquities," 
laughed  the  gray  domino;  "but  if  one  might  venture 
to  criticise  his  costume,  that  toga — " 

But  this  Caesar  evidently  resembled  his  illustrious  pro 
totype  in  aversion  to  criticism.  He  turned  hastily  to  Sir 
Walter,  and  asked  in  a  sibilant  undertone, 


122  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Have  you  found  out  anybody  here?  Do  you  know 
what  Miss  Bell  is  to-night  ?  " 

"No,"  said  Sir  Walter  in  an  indifferent  manner.  "I 
can  tell  scarcely  any  one,"  he  added. 

"You  mean  the  lady  visiting  here  this  winter,  the  one 
who  paints  ?  "  asked  the  gray  domino.  ' '  When  I  feel  in 
clined  to  hunt  her  up,  I  shall  look  for  a  figure  in  a  dark- 
brown  dress,  seated  in  artistic  pose  before  a  red  curtain. 
Look,  yonder  is  the  curtain,  but  the  artist  does  not  seem 
to  have  got  there  yet." 

"Not  a  bad  suggestion,"  said  Julius;  "I'll  bear  it  in 
mind." 

"Not  a  bad  suggestion,"  echoed  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's 
thoughts,  but  he  took  care  not  to  speak  them;  "I'll  bear 
it  in  mind,  too.  I  thank  you,  my  unconscious  gray 
domino. " 

Caesar  moved  away,  doubtless  intent  upon  his  new  laws 
for  the  administration  of  the  world,  and  Sir  Walter  ad 
dressed  the  gray  domino. 

"Fair  unknown,"  he  said  with  the  florid  courtesy  of 
his  time,  "it  is  probable  that  in  the  far-off  country  in 
which  each  sometimes  condescends  to  enact  a  role,  we  are 
not  utter  strangers,  and  let  us  take  advantage  of  to-night's 
mysterious  environments  to  suppose  ourselves  friends." 

"Take  the  benefit  of  the  doubt,"  said  the  lady. 
"And  when  the  unmasking  comes?" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  123 

"Then,  may  we  not  be  friends?"  was  the  answer,  in  a 
tone  and  with  a  gesture  worthy  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh. 

The  gray  domino  laughed,  but  her  merriment  seemed 
to  have  some  hidden  source  deeper  than  the  other's 
excellent  acting.  She  laid  her  hand  on  his  arm,  how 
ever,  and  the  two  moved  slowly  through  the  rooms. 
Queen  Elizabeth  gave  a  most  gracious  nod  to  Raleigh, 
and,  as  was  her  way,  shot  a  keen  glance  at  his  companion. 
But,  strangely  enough,  both  he  and  the  gray  domino  felt 
no  solicitude  as  to  what  her  royal  judgment  might  be. 

' '"  Only  look  at  this  a  moment, "  he  said  stopping  be 
fore  the  portrait  of  a  beautiful  woman  that  hung  in  the 
hall;  "  how  wonderfully  that  bright,  high  gaslight  brings 
out  the  coloring  !  It  is  a  fine  face,  too. " 

' '  Look  at  it  more  closely,  and  I  think  you  will  change 
your  mind.  I  remember,  when  I  was  a  child,  visiting 
once  a  lady  I  thought  very  fine-looking,  and  even  beau 
tiful,  the  first  day  I  saw  her;  but  before  I  had  been  with 
her  a  week,  the  face  had  lost  all  its  strength  to  me,  and 
the  beauty  faded  out  with  it.  This  face  of  the  portrait, 
too,  has  a  superficial  likeness  of  strength,  but  look  care 
fully  at  the  mouth,  weak  in  spite  of  its  graceful  lines 
and  its  ripeness;  and  the  curves  of  the  forehead  are  too 
contracted  for  nobleness  of  thought." 

"You  are  skillful  in  reading  character;  but  see  the 
beauty  of  the  countenance  1 " 


124  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

The  gray  domino  turned  to  Sir  Walter. 

"The  utmost  simplicity  of  a  child  is  beautiful  in  its 
appealingness, "  she  said.  "A  child-like  face,  even  in  a 
woman,  has  always  a  grace  and  charm  of  its  own,  al 
though  we  may  see  its  want  of  strength;  but  assump 
tion  never  pleases.  Don't  you  see  that  face  is  haughty, 
and  shallow,  as  haughtiness  usually  is?  I  like  this  one 
better. " 

She  moved  on  a  few  steps  as  she  spoke,  and  then 
stood  looking  at  the  portrait  of  a  girl  who  might  have 
been  twenty.  She  wore  a  riding  habit  of  dark  green, 
and  a  falcon  was  perched  upon  her  wrist.  There  was 
a  stern  sadness  in  the  eyes  that  caught  the  gazer's  atten 
tion  at  once,  and  the  features  were  rather  too  strongly 
marked  for  beauty;  but  the  curving  lips  were  full  of  ten 
derness,  and  the  line  of  the  well-closed  mouth  showed 
power  both  in  action  and  endurance. 

"It  grows  upon  you,"  said  the  gray  domino;  "here 
is  a  girl  younger,  very  likely,  than  she  looks;  yet  a  wo 
man  with  a  history.  She  has  wealth  enough,  probably, 
but  in  some  way  circumstances  are  against  her.  Yet 
there  is  that  in  her  soul  stronger  than  circumstances; 
she  may  never  be  a  happy,  but  she  must  always  be  a 
noble,  woman,  for  loyalty  is  written  on  her  face.  She 
is  the  stuff  heroines  are  made  of.  Now  turn  back  and 
look  at  the  other  portrait  again,  and  you  will  see." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  125 

"I  do  see." 

But  it  was  not  merely  the  contrast  between  the  two 
portraits  that  he  perceived;  he  had  suspected  the  gray 
domino,  he  now  said  to  himself  he  was  sure  he  recog 
nized  her,  and  he  was  thinking  more  of  her  words  than 
of  their  object.  He  stealthily  measured  her  height  with 
his  eyes,  and  noted  every  motion. 

"Yes,  after  all,  it  is  the  expression  which  makes  a 
face,"  he  added,  "although  I  suppose  artists  prize  its 
coloring  extremely." 

"I  think  they  ought.  But  let  me  tell  you  a  secret, 
it  may  be  possible  you  have  not  found  it  out.  Expres 
sion  has  a  coloring  of  its  own,  the  wonderful  shadow 
tints. " 

She  stopped  suddenly,  as  if  studying  what  she  had 
said,  then  added  in  explanation, 

"I  see  there  must  be  a  great  fascination  to  artists  in 
colcr,  but  I  should  think  shadows  would  have  even 
more.  If  I  were  an  artist,  I  would  choose,  if  I  could, 
the  power  of  using  shadows  with  some  touch  of  na 
ture's  marvellous  effects,  rather  than  that  of  excelling 
Titian  in  coloring.  Color  is  certainly  very  beautiful, 
but  the  lights  and  shadows  in  a  face  are  the  story  of  a 
life.  The  artist  who  seizes  upon  these  things  is  dealing 
in  tints  subtler  than  flesh — he  is  painting  a  soul." 

"Then,  you  think  it  is  only  want  of  ability  to  read 


126  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

what  is  written  on  a  face  that  makes  us  ever  deceived  ? 
You  believe  a  man's  face  cannot  be  a  barrier  for  him  to 
successfully  hide  his  habitual  thoughts  behind. 

"I  don't  think  it  can;  for  if  every  muscle  were  kept 
under  perpetual  control,  as  it  would  have  to  be  to  show 
no  traces  of  its  play  when  one  had  felt  any  strong  emo 
tion,  even  then  there  would  not  be  perfect  security. 
There  are  the  eyes — evil  dulls  them,  and  holiness  kin 
dies  their  depths." 

' '  Pain  dulls  them  too,  or  even  overuse.  And  as  to 
orilliancy — how  often  we  see  that,  where  the  light  is 
anything  but  sunshine  !  " 

The  gray  domino  shook  her  head. 

"That  is  a  different  dullness,"  she  answered;  "and 
a  very  different  brightness.  In  a  man  or  woman  de 
voted  to  self-seeking,  or  any  pettiness,  I  don't  say  / 
could  find  this  in  the  face,  but  I  do  say  it  is  to  be 
found  there." 

"You  believe  in  first  impressions,  then?" 
'  "Yes,  in  spite  of  the  lady  I  spoke  of,  and  this  por 
trait — though  the  last  comes  a  good  deal  from  certain 
shadows  not  being  painted  in  the  depth  which  the  orig 
inal  must  have  had.  It  is  almost  always  the  case  that 
our  first  look  at  a  face  catches  something  of  its  real 
meaning.  Our  eyes  are  widest  open  then,  afterward 
we  may  be  blinded  by  some  agreeable  quality,  or  an 


A    LAZY  MAJV'S    WORK.  127 

atmosphere  of  flattery;  we  come  to  weighing  probabili 
ties,  and  there  is  no  balance  in  the  world  so  unreliable. 
Trust  your  intuitions,  Sir  Walter.  Your  El  Dorado 
has  been  more  than  realized  in  this  new  world." 

Her  listener  stood  motionless  an  instant,  evidently 
impressed.  He  felt  sure  his  own  disguise  was  complete; 
he  saw  that  the  gray  domino  was  equally  sure  of  herself, 
for  her  words  had  the  freedom  of  impersonality,  as  well 
as  the  force  of  truth. 

"You  must  be  right,"  he  said.  "I  am  sure  you 
are. " 

' '  When  I  have  gone  away  from  my  intuitions  at  any 
time,"  she  answered,  "I  have  been  forced  to  come  back 
to  them  again." 

"But  every  one  may  not  have  intuitions." 

"I  should  be  sorry  for  the  person  who  is  without 
them,"  she  answered;  "they  are  a  picket  guard." 

Sir  Walter  did  not  seem  to  care  about  talking,  save  as 
a  means  of  drawing  out  his  companion.  Her  voice  had 
kept  its  lowness  and  disguised  accents— except  that  its 
undertone  of  enthusiasm  came  to  him  like  a  remem 
brance — but  she  seemed  to  have  flung  off  a  disguise,  in 
stead  of  having  put  one  on,  and  to  be  uttering  her 
thoughts  more  in  joy  at  her  liberty  to  speak  them  than 
for  the  sake  of  her  hearer.  She  was  feeling  herself  the 
unknown,  and  had  evidently  forgotten  that  later  she 


128  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

must  unmask.  He  held  his  breath,  lest  his  recollection 
of  this  should  be  in  some  way  wafted  to  her. 

She,  too,  spoke  less  as  they  walked  on.  When  a 
subject  was  broached  each  seemed  to  understand  with 
few  words  what  the  other  wished  to  say,  and  as  her  hand 
lay  lightly  on  his  arm,  Raleigh  could  not  of  his  own 
accord  spare  an  instant's  thought  from  the  delicious  con 
sciousness  of  life  that  thrilled  through  him. 

Once  an  impatient  inward  sneer  at  his  credulity  jarred 
upon  his  peace;  it  told  him  he  did  not  really  know  this 
lady,  and  he  did  know,  if  he  chose  to  use  his  reason, 
that  she  must  be  quite  another  person  from  the  one  his 
fancy  willed  to  have  her. 

But  his  mood  and  the  gray  domino  together  were  too 
much  for  him.  She  held  him  by  an  irresistible  attrac 
tion.  Whether  in  this  he  were  fickle,  or,  as  he  dared  to 
believe,  faithful  to  those  first  intuitions  she  had  uncon 
sciously  turned  him  back  upon,  this  unknown  lady  was 
in  some  way  very  near  to  him.  He  would  find  who  she 
was;  this  discovery  was  inevitable,  and  then — and  then — 
what  ? 

"My  kind  Sir  Walter,  I've  found  you  again,"  said  a 
well-known,  undisguisable  voice. 

It  was  for  the  merest  instant,  and  very  slightly,  but  he 
was  sure  the  fingers  upon  his  arm  had  tightened  their 
hold  at  those  tones. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  129 

1 '  Pray  introduce  me  to  this  lady, "  continued  the  new 
comer. 

"I  beg  you  will  do  so  without  delay,"  cried  the  gray 
domino,  "there's  nothing  I  desire  so  much  as  an  inti 
mate  acquaintance  with  gracious  Dame  Fortune." 

' '  I'll  give  both  of  you  anything  you  ask,  to  the  utmost 
extent  of  my  power,  if  you  will  only  tell  me  some  of 
these  people.  I  never  did  like  mysteries — only  my  own, 
Jack  would  put  it,  if  he  were  here.  I  think  he's  been 
very  provoking  and  unkind  to  his  poor,  old — Good 
ness  !  there  it  is  again.  I  really  am  possessed  to  tell 
everything. " 

The  gray  domino  laughed. 

"That's  a  good  part  of  the  fun,"  she  said,  "to  see 
people  forget  themselves." 

' '  Yes,  I  dare  say.  But  I  can't  find  any  body  else  that 
will  do  it  but  me,  that's  what  provokes  me  so.  If  my 
nephew  only  had  told  me — well !  " 

She  stopped  in  despair. 

"You  were  speaking  of  your  nephew,"  suggested 
Raleigh.  "May  I  ask  who  he  is?" 

"Why,  no,  indeed  !"  with  an  indignant  gasp.  "How. 
can  you  ask  me  to  tell  you  who  Jack  is?  unless,"  she 
added  in  a  sudden  after-thought,  "we  exchange  confi 
dences.  'A  fair  exchange  is  no  robbery,'  you  know. 

Will  YOU  ?  " 


130  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Another  ripple  of  soft  laughter  from  the  gray  domino. 

"It  would  not  be  a  'fair  exchange,'"  she  said  in  a 
tone  the  lady  was  not  fortunate  enough  to  catch.  But 
Raleigh  heard  the  words  with  delight.  This  was  cer 
tainly  some  one  who  recognized  Fortune. 

' '  Did  you  hear  Uncle  Sam's  last  ?  "  cried  Urania  com 
ing  up  to  them  with  a  laugh  that  could  belong  only  to 
Bertha  Edgerly. 

"No,  tell  us,  do — and  I,  Dame  Fortune,  will  befriend 
you.  There  !  the  first  rhyme  I  ever  made. " 

"He  was  boasting  that  he  had  outdone  all  the 
wonders  of  the  children's  fairy  books,"  said  the  Muse. 
"  'What's  the  last  thing  out?'  Andrew  asked  him.  'The 
seven-league  boots, ' "  he  shouted  like  a  flash.  He  meant 
the  bicycle.  But  he  went  on  to  say  he  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  putting  that  on  the  world.  Some 
body  asked  him  why  not,  and  he  said  he  was  a 
woman's  rights  advocate,  and  wouldn't  help  the  men 
to  get  hold  of  anything  the  ladies  couldn't  have  a  '  hand 
in,'  or  a  foot  on.  Then  he  threw  back  his  head  and 
laughed,  and  said  he  was  going  to  retire  into  private 
life  .and  study  how  to  be  up  with  the  mother  country. 
He  is  sitting  down  to  rest  somewhere,  I  believe;  he  must 
need  it." 

Half  an  hour  before  supper,  just  at  the  time  she  had 
planned,  Helen  Bell  slipped  quietly  out  of  the  rooms 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  131 

and  up  to  her  own  chamber.  As  she  opened  the  door, 
a  sound  of  movement  surprised  her,  and  to  her  amaze 
ment  Uncle  Sam  came  forward,  saying  he  had  gone  up 
into  the  dressing-room  to  rest  a  few  moments,  for  he  had 
talked  himself  hoarse,  but  he  saw  now  that  he  must  have 
mistaken  the  room. 

"Yes,"  said  Helen,  "the  gentlemen's  dressing-room 
is  the  next  door  on  the  right." 

He  bowed  an  apology  for  his  mistake,  and  went  away. 

Helen  looked  after  him  with  a  frown.  She  felt,  with 
out  being  able  to  give  any  reason  for  it,  that  he  had  not 
mistaken  the  door. 

But  she  put  away  instantly  the  swift  suspicion  of  some 
sinister  design  that  swept  through  her.  Perhaps,  after 
all,  he  had  really  mistaken  the  room,  as  he  said;  or,  at 
the  worst,  this  curiosity  which  he  had  indulged  so  freely 
in  his  assumed  character  was  a  real  trait.  He  could  not 
often  have  so  good  an  opportunity  of  gratifying  it,  and 
she  could  not  tell  how  widely  he  had  been  exploring. 
Her  uneasy  sense  of  danger  was  ridiculous. 

Yet  she  was  uncomfortable;  she  could  not  be  fully 
satisfied  with  this  explanation.  She  had  felt,  with  Ber 
tha,  for  days,  that  something  was  really  the  matter,  though 
it  was  not  easy  to  see  how  she  could  be  concerned  in 
it  Surely,  now,  Kitty  could  have  no  anxiety  on  Mr. 
Holden's  account. 


132  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Helen  would  be  sure  to  notice  at  supper  who  Uncle 
Sam  was. 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh  saw  a  figure  he  had  not  observed 
before  among  the  guests — a  tall  figure,  her  dark  hair 
knotted  at  the  back,  wearing  a  simple  black  dress  that 
did  not  quite  hide  her  graceful  ankles.  But  the  most 
marked  features  in  her  costume,  was  a  vest  and  sleeves 
of  some  silver-threaded  material.  Its  effect  was  that  of 
light  steel  armor.  She  held  a  distaff  with  scornful  indif 
ference,  but  her  hand  lay  lovingly  upon  the  hilt  of  a 
sword  at  her  side. 

' '  '  Joan  of  Arc,  a  light  of  ancient  France, ' "  he  quoted. 
"Joan  of  Arc  in  her  prison,  with  the  fatal  armor  on,  in 
which  she  had  made  her  life  glorious." 

Then  he  turned  away,  glancing  incuriously  at  several 
other  yet  unnoticed  costumes  as  they  passed  him.  For 
he  had  lost  the  gray  domino.  . 

He  could  not  imagine  where  she  was.  He  thought 
she  must  be  eluding  him  somewhere,  and  she  could  do 
it  easily,  for  every  time  he  started  in  search,  resolved  to 
make  the  whole  circuit  of  the  floor  at  once,  and  so  be 
sure  to  find  her,  somebody  stopped  him,  to  ask  a  ques 
tion,  to  request  a  favor,  to  retail  some  bright  speech  just 
heard.  People  were  beginning  to  long  for  their  lost  iden 
tities,  and  he  could  easily  have  discovered  a  number  of 
them,  had  he  tried.  But  he  wanted  to  discover  only  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  133 

gray  domino,  for  he  knew  that  she  would  not  speak  be 
fore  the  time  came,  and  he  must  be  beside  her  at  the 
unmasking,  or  she  might  be  hidden  from  him  by  the 
crowd  of  others,  and  slip  away  before  he  could  identify 
her. 

But  though  he  must  certainly  do  this,  it  was  difficult 
to  say  how  it  could  be  accomplished,  when  his  former 
companion  was  nowhere  to  be  found. 

He  resolved  to  be  escort  to  the  self-styled  Dame  For 
tune,  longing  to  win  a  smile  from  the  veritable  lady 
herself. 

The  consequence  was  that  when  at  the  signal  every 
mask  was  lifted,  a  shrill  cry  of, 

"Jack!  Jack!  I  might  have  known;  he  was  just 
saucy  enough  for  you,"  drew  all  eyes  toward  the  illus 
trious  Knight  of  the  Cloak  at  Mrs.  Barney's  side. 

Where  was  the  gray  domino  ? 

Nowhere  to  be  seen. 

She  was  not  the  person  he  had  thought  her,  for  Helen 
Bell  was  looking  out  with  grave  eyes  from  the  face  above 
the  corselet  of  Joan  of  Arc.  She  was  watching  to  see  who 
Uncle  Sam  would  prove  to  be,  nor  was  she  the  only  in 
quirer  for  that  amusing  gentleman. 

He  had  disappeared.  Nobody  bearing  the  least  re 
semblance  to  him  could  be  found  at  the  table,  or  in  any 
of  the  rooms.  There  was  a  murmur  of  general  disap- 


134  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

pointment,  for  his  cleverness  had  piqued  everybody's 
curiosity. 

"Where  is  he?"  called  one  and  another. 

"Here  is  an  extra  black  domino,"  declared  a  lady. 
"I'm  sure  I  counted  only  five  before." 

But  it  was  promptly  decided  by  general  assent,  that 
one  could  not  be  sure  of  a  thing  like  this,  for  dominos, 
gliding  about  in  all  directions,  were  impossible  to  count. 
They  disappeared  and  reappeared  like  strands  in  a  braid; 
and  all  doubt  as  to  this  matter  was  settled  when  the  sixth 
black  figure  displayed  the  dignified  countenance  of  Mr. 
Knight,  and  discoursed  in  the  choicest  language,  for  not 
a  domino  there  could  have  acted  the  part  of  Uncle  Sam. 

Mrs.  Mason,  appealed  to,  at  last  explained  that  he 
had  begged  her  to  excuse  him,  for  he  had  letters  to 
write  which  must  go  by  the  foreign  mail  the  next  morn 
ing.  When  asked  to  tell  who  he  was,  she  laughed  as 
teasingly  as  Beatrice  herself  could  have  done,  and  re 
minded  her  guests  that  she  was  beund  by  the  children's 
pledge — "  honor  bright. " 

When  Mr.  Holden,  making  his  way  to  Helen,  com 
plimented  her  excellent  conception  of  her  part,  she 
smiled  as  she  thanked  him,  and  spoke  of  how  well  he 
had  brought  out  Sir  Walter,  even  to  his  cloak. 

' '  You  saw  me,  then  ? "  he  asked, 

"Oh,  yes,   several  times." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  135 

"I  did  not  see  Joan  of  Arc  until  a  very  little  while 
ago;  I  think  it  was  strange." 

"Did  you  expect  to  see  everybody  at  once  in  an  as 
sembly  where  each  person  you  looked  at  held  you  with 
the  spell  of  an  incognito  ? " 

"Can  you   tell  me  anything  of  the   gray  domino?" 

"The  gray  domino!     Was  there  only  one?" 

"  I  saw  only  one.     There  is  none  now." 

As  he  spoke  Helen  glanced  about  her. 

' '  I  see  there  is  none, "  she  answered.  ' '  It  may  have 
followed  Uncle  Sam's  example." 

As  she  said  this  she  turned  her  head  by  a  sudden  im 
pulse,  and  met  the  eyes  of  Mr.  Knight,  who  was  stand 
ing  near.  He  had  overheard  the  conversation. 

When  she  again  spoke  to  Holden,  there  was  a  flush  of 
deepening  embarrassment  upon  her  face.  Jack  thought 
her  proposal  to  move  further  down  the  table,  was  be 
cause  she  did  not  want  him  to  talk  with  Knight,  and  he 
asked  no  more  questions  about  the  gray  domino. 

But  possibly  he  no  longer  doubted  who  that  mys 
terious  lady  was. 


CHAPTER   IX.    . 

"  TV  yTY  aunt  will  be  in  very  soon,"  said  Jenny  Grier- 

-L'J-  son,  as  she  yielded  her  hand  to  Knight's  firm 
clasp,  and  permitted  him  to  hold  it  in  his  own  while  he 
led  her  to  a  chair. 

" I  hope  not  'very  soon,'"  he  said.  "I  am  quite  con 
tent  to  wait  for  her  a  long  time;  indeed  I  am  happy,  as 
you  must  know,  Miss  Grierson,  whenever  you  are  so 
good  as  to  take  her  place." 

Jenny  made  no  answer;  she  blushed  a  little,  and  fin 
gered  her  cuffs  nervously. 

"That  is,  I  mean  to  come  in  her  stead,"  he  went  on. 
''You  have  a  place  of  your  own,  a  first  place." 

Jenny's  blush  grew  more  pronounced. 

"  Have  you  seen  the  last  number  of  'Scribner'?  "  she 
said,  taking  it  from  the  table,  and  busying  herself  with 
turning  the  leaves.  "I  think  our  best  magazines  will 
stand  comparison  with  those  of  any  nation." 

"Uncle  Sam  should  be  here." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  137 

"Isn't  he?"  she  asked,  looking  at  him  archly. 

"No — that  is — well — really,  Miss  Jenny,  you  must  do 
me  a  favor.  Don't  mention  that  suspicion  to  any  one. " 

"Why  not,  now  it  is  all  over?  I  should  think  you 
would  like  to  have  people  know  it  was  you  who  did  so 
splendidly." 

"Oh,  no.  That  is,  I'm  diffident — in  short,  Miss 
Jenny,  you  have  promised,  I  believe." 

' '  No,  Mr.  Knight,  I  have  not  done  any  such  thing. " 

"You  will,   then,   certainly!" 

"Promise  not  to  tell  what  I  only  suspect !  Suspicion 
is  a  gaseous  sort  of  thing,  it  always  escapes.  But  you 
were  Uncle  Sam  ?  " 

"What  makes  you  even  think  so?" 

"Because — "  but  Jenny  came  to  a  sudden  halt;  the 
question  seemed  all  at  once  very  difficult  to  answer. 
Her  companion  dropped  his  eyes  from  her  face — "be 
cause,"  she  finished  hurriedly,  "he  said  something  that 
showed  he  knew  me,  and  I  thought  it  must  be  you." 

Indiscreet  Mr.  Knight,  to  have  let  the  temptation  to 
say  a  tender  word  to  this  girl  overcome  his  prudence. 
How  he  would  be  laughed  at  in  certain  quarters,  if  the 
thing  were  known,  and  reproved,  too  ! 

But  he  did  not  intend  it  should  be  known.  He  had 
not  for  his  own  undoing,  surely,  trusted  himself  to  the 
tender  mercies  of  the  most  honest  and  beautiful  blue  eyes 


138  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

he  ever  saw.  Whatever  happened,  he  could  not  deny 
last  night's  speech. 

"  If  I  should  make  your  '  gaseous  suspicion, '  as  you 
call  it,  Miss  Jenny,  into  the  solid  of  a  fact,  would 
you  keep  it  secret  for  me?  But,  stop — don't  answer 
that.  I  was  Uncle  Sam;  now  I  have  thrown  myself 
upon  your  honor,  so  you  can't  tell." 

"No,  I  cannot  now,"  answered  the  girl  well  pleased. 

Knight  was  still  angry  with  himself.  If  Helen  Bell 
should  speak  !  But  he  had  his  answer  ready.  Yet  he 
had  forfeited  his  position  of  perfect  security,  and  the 
thought  would  have  disturbed  him  still  more,  if  it  had 
been  a  less  charming  little  hand  which  pulled  him  down 
from  it. 

"I  don't  see  why  it  is  not  right  to  tell,"  repeated 
Jenny,  "though  of  course  I  won't." 

Knight  leaned  forward  in  his  chair  and  looked  into 
the  questioner's  eyes  as  well  as  she  would  let  him. 

"Can't  you  trust  me  for  even  a  little  while?  I  wish 
you  would — "  he  broke  off  suddenly.  ' '  Sometime  I 
will  tell  you  all,"  he  said;  "it  may  be  very  soon,  but  I 
cannot  now.  You  will  forgive  me,  and  wait  ? " 

"Certainly,"  said  the  girl.  "I  never  beg  anybody's 
confidence. " 

' '  Anybody's  ?  " 

"Oh,  you're  here,  Jenny,"  cried  Bertha  pushing  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'.  139 

door  open  hastily.  ' '  I've  been  looking  for  you  every 
where.  " 

"Yes, "said  Miss  Grierson,  "and  won't  you  help  me 
to  entertain  Mr.  Knight  until  Aunt  Kitty  comes  home  ?  " 

"She  has  just  driven  up  to  the  door.  I  hear  her 
coming  along  the  hall.  I'll  run,  or  she  will  want  me 
to  carry  her  wraps  upstairs,  not  to  keep  Mr.  Knight 
waiting. " 

"I  will  take  them,"  said  Jenny,  rising  that  she  might 
meet  Mrs.  Mason  at  the  door.  "Good  morning,  Mr. 
Knight,  if  I  do  not  see  you  again." 

So  Jenny  Grierson,  too,  became  aware  of  a  mystery; 
she  had  no  idea  of  its  being  a  very  grave  one,  and  she 
said  nothing  about  it,  regarding  silence  as  part  of  her 
promise.  But  she  did  not  any  longer  laugh  at  Bertha, 
and  she  began  to  take  note  of  trifles  not  thought  of 
before.  She  recollected  that  Kitty  always  sat  beside 
Helen  at  table  now,  and  she  looked  at  this  change  by 
the  light  of  her  newly  gained  consciousness,  to  decide 
if  it  were  a  mere  whim,  or  had  any  connection  with  the 
secret  that  she  found  as  fascinating  as  secrets  usually  are. 
Whatever  it  was,  Mrs.  Mason  knew  it. 

Jenny  scorned  to  pry,  but  she  did  not  see  why  she 
need  shut  her  eyes.  She  opened  them  a  little  wider, 
therefore,  and  saw,  or  thought  she  saw,  that  her  aunt 
watched  Helen  furtively  a  great  deal.  At  table  she  was 


140  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

very  attentive  to  her,  always  insisting,  though  quietly, 
that  Helen  should  have  a  dish  offered  to  her  before  she 
helped  herself  from  it.  It  seemed  to  Jenny  an  unneces 
sary  formality  to  make  it  so  much  a  matter  of  etiquette; 
but  there  was  no  part  of  the  mystery  in  this,  her  aunt 
was  compelling  herself  to  be  very  courteous  to  Helen 
for  the  simple  reason  that  she  was  not  fond  of  her. 

Jenny  found  nothing  to  gratify  her  curiosity,  which 
before  long  died  a  natural  death,  and  all  the  sooner 
because  her  mind  was  full  of  another  subject.  Her 
thoughts  were  turned  upon  the  solution  of  quite  a  dif 
ferent  problem;  and  as  the  days  went  by,  the  openings 
and  shuttings  of  the  hall  door  were  secretly  exciting 
sounds  to  her.  She  never  listened  more  eagerly  than 
to  learn  who  had  come  in. 

One  question  grew  all  important;  she  saw  that  Mr. 
Knight  was  certainly  very  attentive  to  Helen,  and  Helen 
was  so  interesting.  Could  this  really  be  only  because 
he  would  not  seem  marked  in  his  attentions  to  herself? 
Or,  she  wondered,  did  he  look  at  Helen  in  the  same 
way  as  at  her,  and  say  the  same  kind  of  things  ?  The 
girl  half  laughed,  and  was  half  indignant,  too,  because 
as  the  thought  crossed  her  mind,  she  answered  involun 
tarily,  "He  would  not  dare  to  try  it."  She  wondered 
how  Helen  in  love  would  appear,  but  she  did  not  care 
to  see  at  present. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  141 

"I  want  to  say  something  to  you.  Shall  I  shut  the 
door  ? "  asked  Bertha,  walking  into  Kitty's  room  after 
Mr.  Knight  had  gone. 

' '  Certainly.     What  is  it  ?     Has  Mr.  Dewey  proposed  ?" 

' '  Kit,   how  can  you  talk  so  ?     Such  an  idea. 

"Oh,  then  he  hasn't  come  to  the  point.  Take  my 
advice,  Bertha,  and  say  'no'  to  him  when  he  does." 

"Never  fear  my  being  foolish,  when — " 

"Surely,  I  don't.  It  all  depends  on  what  you  call 
folly.  Opinions  differ." 

' '  You  know  there's  nothing  serious.  But  it  does  no 
harm  to  play  him  off  a  little." 

"Against  whom  ? " 

There  was  a  mixture  of  amusement  and  scorn  in 
Kitty's  tone  that  the  other  felt  without  quite  compre 
hending.  She  hesitated,  and  flushed  a  little. 

"Well,"  she  said,  "against — anybody.  How  queer 
you  are,  Kit;  I  thought  you  knew  there  were  more  in 
teresting  people  than  Willie  Dewey  about." 

"I  do." 

"Mr.   Knight,   for  instance,"  added  Bertha. 

Kitty  gave  her  a  quick  glance  of  alarm. 

"Mr.  Knight  is  not  fit  for  you,  Bertha.  I  hope  you 
will  never  waste  a  thought  upon  him." 

"No,  indeed,  not  when  it's  so  plain  what  your  inten 
tions  with  regard  to  him  are.  The  mystery  has  all  come 


142  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

out  at  last,  and  you  might  just  as  well  have  said  in  the 
first  place  what  you  wanted  him  here  for." 

Mrs.  Mason's  eyes  dilated,  and  her  dry  lips  parted  as 
she  looked  at  the  speaker. 

"But  that's  exactly  why  I  came  to  tell  you,"  pursued 
Bertha.  "I've  seen  through  you  so  well,  and  I  appre 
ciate  your  motives  to  the  utmost,  dear  Kit,  ridiculous, 
no  doubt,  as  they  are — "  she  waited  an  instant  to  glance 
into  the  opposite  mirror,  and  poise  her  head  a  little 
differently — "and,  as  I  said,  that's  the  reason  I've  come 
to  tell  you  that  if  you  want  Mr.  Knight  for  Helen,  your 
niece  Jenny  is  more  likely  to  get  him." 

' '  Oh,  you  think  that !  "  said  Kitty,  and  smiled  to  see 
the  girl's  satisfaction  at  her  own  acumen.  Her  relief  at 
the  result  of  Bertha's  investigations  was  so  great  that, 
combined  with  the  knowledge  she  had,  it  made  her 
undervalue  the  warning. 

"It's  of  no  use  to  try  to  keep  things  from  you, 
Bertha,"  she  confessed.  "But  your  fancy,  my  dear,  is 
too  absurd.  Jenny,  you  know,  is  rather  fond  of  a  little 
quiet  flirtation,  and  I  suppose  Mr.  Knight  likes  some 
entertainment  when  Helen  is  at  work;  but  don't  you 
notice  how  attentive  he  is  to  her  whenever  she  is 
free  ? " 

"The  attentions  are  all  on  his  side.  I  don't  think 
she  likes  him  very  well,  she  only  tries  to  be  polite. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  143 

Now,  you  may  believe  it  or  not,  but  Jenny  is  polite 
without  having  to  try." 

Kitty  smiled  serenely. 

"Jenny  is  a  little  witch,"  she  answered.  "But  you 
can't  be  sure  how  Helen  feels  about  anything,  except 
that  she  dislikes  me  excessively.  You  can  all  see  that." 

"Why,  I  don't  know;  she  doesn't  do  anything,  and  I 
never  heard  her  say  one  word  against  you." 

"Doesn't  do  anything!"  but  Kitty  stopped.  "There 
are  hundreds  of  little  ways  one  can't  take  hold  of,  Ber 
tha,  "  she  finished.  ' '  No  matter  though,  I  am  above  car 
ing  for  these  trifles.  As  to  Mr.  Knight,  he  is  very 
friendly  with  me;  I  really  know  a  good  deal  of  his  affairs 
— he  speaks  to  me  in  confidence, "  as  the  other  was  about 
to  question. 

"Oh!" 

"So  let  us  wait  patiently,  and  see  how  matters  will 
turn  out." 

"I'll  wait,  if  you  will,"  laughed  Bertha  as  she  went 
away.  "I  dare  say,"  she  muttered,  "you  will  be  well 
enough  pleased;  something  satisfactory  will  come  out  of 
it,  on  whichever  side  the  gentleman  turns  his  eyes.  As  if 
I  could  not  see  the  difference  he  makes  between  Jenny 
and  me;  but  Kit  shall  not  get  hold  of  that  reason.  I 
don't  care  for  him,  but  he  ought  to  show  me  a  little  more 
politeness  in  my  own  home." 


144  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Jenny,"  she  said,  as  the  two  sat  over  the  fire  in  Miss 
Grierson's  room,  "Kitty  says  she  knows  all  about  Mr. 
Knight,  he  confides  his  private  affairs  to  her,  and  he  is 
quite  devoted  to  Helen,  only  amusing  himself  with  you 
in  the  interims,  while  she  is  cultivating  her  muse. 
'What  do  you  think  of  that  for  high?'  If  you  can't 
talk  slang  in  your  own  room  in  the  dead  of  the  night, 
when  everybody  has  gone  to  bed,  what  good  is  it, 
anyhow  ? " 

Jenny  uttered  a  forced  laugh. 

"Your  aunt  is  the  wise  woman,  Miss  Jenny;  she 
knows  everything. " 

"I  am  aware  of  that,"  laughed  Jenny  again,  this  time 
somewhat  more  naturally.  She  was  at  the  rebound  from 
her  instant  acceptance  of  the  statement,  and,  with  that 
inalienable  prerogative  of  relationship,  was  assuring  her 
self  that  her  aunt's  sagacity  was  by  no  means  infallible. 

She  had  nothing  to  offer  in  confutation  of  the  assertion 
but  the  recollection  of  glances  and  of  disconnected  words. 
But  she  could  easily  read  the  glances,  and  she  believed 
what  the  words  were  meant  to  convey  to  her.  Bertha's 
speech,  however,  found  lodgment  in  her  mind,  and  bore 
its  nettles.  She  assured  herself  that  she  did  not  doubt, 
yet  she  was  not  quite  at  rest.  She,  too,  began  to  balance 
probabilities,  and  to  watch.  It  seemed  as  if  gradually  all 
eyes  were  being  turned  upon  Helen. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  145 

Helen  meanwhile  went  on  with  her  work  as  quietly  and 
joined  in  the  amusements  as  readily  as  if  she  never 
dreamed  that  any  one  bestowed  more  than  an  occasional 
kindly  thought  upon  her.  She  certainly  had  no  idea  of 
the  web  being  woven  about  her.  But  in  spite  of  Mrs. 
Edgerly's  unvarying  goodness  and  Andrew's  friendliness, 
the  atmosphere  was  beginning  to  be  oppressive  to  her. 
She  was  glad  her  visit  was  almost  over. 

One  evening  Helen's  face  wore  a  troubled  expression, 
which  she  explained  by  saying  she  had  lost  an  excellent 
order  that  day  through  a  delay  in  the  mails.  A  friend 
had  wanted  a  small  picture  to  send  as  a  wedding  present 
She  had  only  then  decided  what  to  give. 

"  The  time  was  so  short, "  said  Helen,  "she  wrote  that 
if  she  did  not  hear  as  early  as  last  evening  she  should  be 
obliged  to  take  something  else  instead,  and  asked  me  to 
telegraph.  I  did  so  immediately  on  hearing  this  morn 
ing,  but  it  was  too  late.  From  the  date  of  her  note  I 
ought  to  have  received  it  yesterday.  By  my  not  answer 
ing,  she  feared  I  might  be  away,  and  should  not  have 
time  to  do  the  work." 

"And  the  strange  thing  about  it,"  she  added  when  her 
hearers  had  expressed  their  sympathy,  "was  that  there 
were  two  other  letters  of  mine  late.  It  does  not  often 
happen  that  three  come  to  you  at  once  by  roundabout 
ways. " 


* 


146  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

When  Helen  had  gone  to  her  room  that  night  Mrs. 
Edgerly  came  in,  and  told  her  that  a  young  friend  was  to 
be  married  by  and  by,  and  that  she  should  be  very  glad  if 
Helen  would  fill  an  order  for  her,  at  her  own  time  within 
six  months. 

' '  Oh, "  cried  the  girl,  her  face  growing  crimson,  ' '  how 
I  wish  I  had  not  spoken  of  it !  It  was  very  stupid  in 
me;  but  I  forgot  for  the  moment  I  was  not  at  home;  and 
you  know  Mrs.  Edgerly — " 

"My  dear,"  interrupted  the  elder  lady,  "I  have  meant 
all  along  to  give  you  this  order,  but  I  didn't  want  you  to 
be  any  busier  while  you  were  here,  and  so  I  was  waiting 
until  you  went  home." 

"But,  you  remember,  you  have  given  me  several, 
already. " 

"Well,  my  dear,  and  doesn't  that  little  gem  of  yours 
look  very  pretty  in  the  drawing-room  ?  Why  shouldn't 
I  ornament  my  house,  if  I  like  ? " 

Helen  looked  up  at  her  through  a  mist,  and  smiled. 

Mrs.   Edgerly  smiled,   too,  and  nodded. 

"I  mean  just  that,  my  dear,"  she  said,  "your  pictures 
are  ornaments  to  anybody's  house;  and  be  patient,  by  and 
by  everybody  will  find  it  out  and  want  them;  everybody 
that  can  afford  them,  for  then  they'll  be  very  expensive 
luxuries.  You  have  been  so  brave,  Helen,  things  will  be 
sure  to  come  all  right  at  last." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  147 

"Will  they?"  asked  the  girl  sadly.  Then  she  added, 
"  Everything  would  be  very  smooth,  certainly,  if  people 
were  all  as  kind  as  you." 

The  old  lady  came  up  to  her,  with  a  look  in  her  face 
of  having  something  important  to  say,  and  laid  both 
hands  upon  the  girl's  shoulders.  But  then  she  hesitated. 

"My  dear,"  she  said  at  length,  "there  are  things  in 
most  people's  lives  that  they  never  talk  about.  I  am  very 
fond  of  you  for  your  own  sake,  and  anything  I  can  do 
is  always  a  pleasure;  you  permit  me  very  little.  But, 
apart  from  this,  there  is  another  reason;  your  father  once 
gave  help  to  my  son  in  a  way  that  makes  me  owe  an  un 
ending  debt  of  gratitude  to  him  and  his.  It  is  not  neces 
sary  to  bring  up  the  old  story,  it  grieves  me  too  much. " 

"Oh,   no,   no." 

' '  My  Harry  had  a  kind  heart,  but  he  was  very  wild, 
and  your  father  once  saved  him  from — yes,  I  suppose  it 
would  have  been  a  criminal  act.  He  gave  me  back  my 
son.  His  wife  and  daughter,  Helen,  have  been  too 
'proud  with  me.  It  is  not  easy  to  feel  myself  so  much  in 
debt,  and  be  able  to  do  nothing.  You  must  remember 
that,  and  not  be  selfish  with  me.  And  now  go  to  bed 
easy  in  your  mind,  for  this  has  been  coming  to  you  for  a 
long  time." 

She  turned  to  leave  her,  but  at  the  door  stopped,  and 
coming  back,  said, 


148  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Nobody  knows  about  this,  my  dear,  not  even  my 
own  family;  I  don't  think  anybody  now  living  does,  ex 
cept  your  mother. " 

The  entreaty  in  her  face,  the  pain  in  her  voice,  which 
showed  she  was  already  suffering  from  even  so  slight 
a  breaking  in  as  this  upon  the  reserve  of  years,  touched 
Helen  keenly.  She  put  her  arms  gently  about  the 
speaker,  and  kissed  her  cheek  with  a  tender  reverence. 

"Mamma  has  never  alluded  to  it,"  she  said,  "nor 
will  I." 

Mrs.   Edgerly  was  satisfied. 

The  next  morning  Andrew  intercepted  the  coachman 
as  he  was  driving  out  of  the  yard. 

"Where  are  you  going?"  he  asked. 

The  man  told  his  several  errands,  and  that  on  the 
way  home  he  was  to  call  at  the  post-office. 

"Yes,"  said  Mason,  "that's  right.  You  always  get 
the  mail  yourself,  James?" 

"Yes,  sir,  I  always  bring  it  up,  unless  you  get  it 
yourself  when  you're  out" 

"I  mean,  do  you  always  go  to  the  delivery  window 
and  take  the  letters  from  the  clerk,  or  does  any  body 
ever  bring  them  out  to  you  while  you  sit  in  the  wagon  ?  " 

"No,  sir,  never.  Nobody  never  touches  your  letters 
that  could  do  anything  to  'em.  The  other  day,  Hero 
— he's  a  skittish  beast,  sir,  anyhow — got  frightened  as  I 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  149 

was  coming  home  from  some  errands,  and  cut  up  dread 
ful  bad;  when  I  tried  to  stop  him  at  the  office,  he  be 
haved  so  bad  he  got  to  making  the  horse  before  him 
uneasy,  and  I  was  just  a-going  to  drive  him  home  and 
walk  back  there,  when  that  gentleman  I've  seen  here 
so  often,  comes  out  to  the  door.  He  had  his  letters 
in  his  hand.  '  Hullo ! '  he  says  to  me,  '  what's  the 
trouble?  I'll  git  your  letters/  he  says,  when  I  told 
him  I  couldn't  leave  the  horse.  'What's  the  number?' 
And  he  came  back  in  a  minute  separating  'em  all  from 
his,  and  handed  'em  to  me.  I  told  him  I  was  ever  so 
much  obliged,  and  he  laughed  and  said,  '  that  was  noth 
ing,'  and  went  off.  He's  the  only  one  that  touched  the 
letters  but  me,  since  I've  been  here  these  two  years  and 
more. " 

"Was  it  Mr.   Holden?"  asked  Mason. 

"No,  sir;  I  can  tell  Mr.  Holden  well  enough;  nor  it 
wasn't  that  other  gentleman  that  lives  in  town;  it  was 
the  little  man  with  the  light  hair  that  bows  so  much 
and  is  so  quick." 

"Mr.   Knight?" 

"Yes,  I  believe  that's  his  name.  There  he  is  going 
by  now,  bowing  to  you,  sir;  he  always  sees  everything." 

Andrew  laughed,   though  James  could  not  tell  why. 

"Yes,  that  was  Mr.  Knight.  What  day  did  he  hand 
you  out  the  letters?" 


150  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

James  considered.  "It  was  the  night  before  last,  sir. 
I  was  coming  home  from  the  saw-mill  when  Hero  be 
gan  to  cut  up." 

This  was  the  evening  on  which  Helen's  mail  ought 
to  have  come. 

"I  find  no  fault  with  you  now,  James,  but  another 
time,  if  any  such  thing  happens,  drive  home  and  go 
back  again.  Don't  commission  any  body,  no  matter 
vho  he  is,  to  get  the  mail  for  you." 

"No,  sir;  but  I  hope  there's  no  harm  done?" 

' '  You  have  done  nothing  out  of  the  way  this  time, " 
repeated  Andrew.  ' '  I  only  warn  you  in  future  not  to 
ask  any  one,  not  even  Mr.  Knight." 

"I  didn't  ask  him,  sir;  he  offered  the  minute  he 
saw  me." 

"Ye-es,  ye-es." 

Andrew  wondered  whether  there  was  any  connection 
between  Knight's  handling  of  the  mail  and  the  delay  of 
Helen's  letters.  It  was  not  enough  to  prove  this,  that 
the  two  happened  on  the  same  night.  But  there  was 
something  about  the  young  man  he  did  not  like;  he 
had  a  hard  face,  though  it  was  always  beaming  with 
smiles  and  he  was  closeted  with  Kitty  too  much.  Andrew 
saw  there  was  some  secret  understanding  between  them. 
He  had  not  a  thought  of  jealousy;  he  knew  his  wife's 
heart  was  his,  and  he  had  much  too  great  faith  in  her  to 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  151 

imagine  for  a  moment  she  was  capable  of  the  vulgar 
wickedness  jealousy  on  his  part  would  impute  to  her. 
But  he  had  seen  better  than  Bertha  that  something  was 
amiss  with  Kitty,  and  that  it  was  in  some  way  connected 
with  Knight,  whose  influence  over  her  was  bad.  Now 
the  suggestion  came  to  him  that  Helen's  interests  were 
involved. 

Had  he  heard  what  passed  in  the  drawing-room  in  the 
brief  interview  between  his  wife  and  this  stranger  on 
the  morning  Jenny  left  them  together,  he  would  not 
have  been  obliged  to  wonder  whether  these  two  facts 
were  coincidence,  or  cause  and  effect. 

' '  Kitty, "  he  had  said  to  his  wife  a  few  days  before 
this,  and  he  had  put  his  arm  about  her  as  he  spoke, 
"what  is  the  matter  with  you,  little  one?  Something  is 
wrong;  what  is  it  'a-working  in  your  mind-like'?" 

But  Kitty  had  put  him  off,  since  it  was  of  no  use  to 
deny  that  something  was  wrong.  She  told  him  other  peo 
ple's  faults  had  troubled  her,  that  she  was  not  at  liberty  to 
speak  of  them  at  present,  that  sometime  he  would  know; 
all  her  own  affairs  she  brought  to  him  without  reserve. 
And  Andrew  was  silenced,  if  not  content,  especially  when 
she  assured  him  Mr.  Knight  was  one  of  the  best  people 
in  the  world,  and  a  great  comfort  to  her  now.  He  had, 
indeed,  ventured  the  single  question,  "Whose  affair  is 
it,  then?"  But  even  this  he  did  not  learn,  and  he 


152  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

was  left  to  make  his  own  discoveries,  and  draw  his 
own  conclusions. 

A  part  of  these  conclusions,  and  his  analysis  of  the 
characters  about  him  were  from  time  to  time  given  to 
Holden. 

Andrew  had  looked  in  to  see  him  one  morning,  when 
Mrs.  Barney,  after  minute  inquiries  as  to  the  well-being 
of  all  his  household,  began  to  expatiate  upon  Knight. 

' '  Such  a  nice  young  man  that  is  I  met  at  your  house — 
that  Mr.  Knight — so  affable,  and  so  attentive  !  He  came 
and  sat  down  beside  me  while  I  was  talking  with  Miss 
Bell,  and  made  himself  so  agreeable." 

"  Ye-es,"  said  the  other,  "he  makes  himself  too  much 
of  everything.  I  wish  he'd  try  the  quiet  dodge  once  in 
a  while." 

Jack  laughed. 

"He  rather  amused  me,"  he  said,  "but  I  took  a 
small  dose." 

"Ye-es;  that  was  a  very  good  thing — for  you.  I  have- 
an  idea  he's  a  pyrotechnic  kind  of  fellow;  when  he  has 
sent  off  all  his  squibs,  he  will  go  home  for  a  new 
supply. " 

"Perhaps  he  will  send,"  Holden  suggested. 

Andrew  looked  up  in  comic  despair. 

' '  The  saints  forefend  ! " 

"What  are  you  two  talking  about?     Jack,  what  does 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  153 

Mr.  Mason  mean  by  '  a  pyrotechnic  kind  of  fellow '  ?  I 
thought  those  were  fire-works." 

"Ye-es,  Mrs.  Barney,  that's  what  I  mean;  the  young 
man  is  brilliant,  and  you  can't  tell  where  he's  going  to 
turn  up,  or  what  ? " 

"Well,  of  course  I  don't  know  him;  he  may  be  just 
as  you  say,  though  I  can't  quite  get  at  the  meaning  of 
it;  but  one  thing  I  can  tell  you,  he  has  good  taste  enough 
to  admire  Miss  Bell  very  much.  That's  plain  to  every 
body." 

"Ye-es,"  answered  Andrew,  very  slowly,  and  paused; 
then  added  with  quiet  earnestness,  "I  don't  see,  Mrs. 
Barney,  how  any  one  can  help  admiring  Miss  Bell,  and 
more,  respecting  and  loving  her.  I  am  glad  you  do. 
She  doesn't  wear  her  heart  on  her  sleeve,  but  there  never 
was  a  truer  one.  I  am  sorry  she  is  to  leave  us  so  soon. " 

"Oh!  is  she?"  cried  Mrs.  Barney.     "That's  too  bad'." 

"I  suppose  from  what  you  have  said,"  began  Holden, 
' '  that  when  Miss  Bell  goes,  you  will  be  relieved  from 
Knight's  presence  ? " 

Andrew  did  not  glance  at  the  questioner,  but  turning 
toward  the  window  on  his  other  hand,  fixed  his  eyes 
meditatively  upon  a  fleecy,  summer-like  cloud  sailing 
past.  He  waited,  feeling  the  stillness  that  followed, 
and  interpreting  from  this,  rather  than  from  his  care 
less  tones,  the  importance  of  the  question  to  the  asker. 


154  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  Ye-es,  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  he  did.  It  looks  prob 
able  to  me,  upon  the  whole." 

"Miss  Bell  is  interested  in  him,   then?" 

This  time  Mason  looked  full  at  his  friend,  and  said  he 
hoped  there  was  no  possibility  of  such  a  thing;  but  how 
could  he  tell?  "You  know  the  old  saying,"  he  added: 
"Propinquity  works  wonders." 

"O  Mr.  Mason,"  cried  Aunt  Delia,  "Miss  Bell  is 
not  at  all  the  kind  of  person  to  like  a  young  man  just 
because  he  happens  to  be  around.  I  had  my  own  little 
cherished  dream  about  her,"  she  added  with  a  sigh;  "but 
no  matter,  it's  no  use  thinking  of  anything  I  said  to  Jack. 
He  is  obdurate." 

"I  shall  not  let  you  say  anything  against  Jack,  Mrs. 
Barney;  he  is  not  the  wisest  man  living,  but  he's  a  good 
fellow.  Now  step  behind  the  door,  Holden,  and  hear 
the  other  side." 

"No,   thank  you." 

"You  don't  want  to  improve,   hey?" 

tf olden  turned  to  his  friend  seriously,  for  he  perceived 
the  undertone  of  earnest  in  Andrew's  manner. 

' '  What  is  it  you  mean,   Mason  ?  " 

But  the  coachman  came  to  the  door  with  a  message; 
and  after  this,  there  were  other  interruptions,  so  that 
Jack  never  heard  what  Mason  had  in  his  mind  to  say; 
he  only  guessed  it  long  afterward. 


CHAPTER    X. 

IT  was  one  of  what  Helen  called  her  ' '  dawdling  days ' 
— days  in  which  experience  had  taught  her  she  could 
do  no  work.  She  had  struggled  a  long  time  against  this 
conviction,  calling  her  mood  mere  indolence  which  res 
olute  will  could  overcome,  and  had  set  this  resolute  will 
to  the  task,  but  always  with  the  same  result,  her  work 
had  never  been  worth  keeping,  and  the  fruitless  endeavor 
had  injured  the  spontaneity  of  her  fancy  when  the  happy 
mood  returned.  With  the  goad  of  poverty  behind,  and 
mountains  of  attainment  in  her  pathway  to  be  climbed, 
it  was  hard  ever  to  wait  for  moods.  Yet,  at  last,  she 
was  learning  that  patience,  which  has  in  it  the  strength 
of  a  reserve,  and  is  sure  to  bring  up  the  lagging  relays 
of  force. 

This  morning  there  was  no  power  in  her.  She  was 
fit  only  for  fancy-work;  so  after  breakfast  she  remained 
with  the  others,  instead  of  retiring  to  her  own  room  as 
usual. 


156  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Are  you  going  to  give  us  the  pleasure  of  your  so 
ciety?"  cried  Jenny.  "How  nice!" 

"You  must  be  anxious  to  finish  up  your  embroidery," 
remarked  Kitty. 

"Yes,"  said  Helen  coolly,  as,  with  a  nod  and  a  smile 
at  Jenny,  she  took  up  her  basket,  and  seated  herself  near 
the  window. 

"I  don't  think  Helen  is  much  in  love  with  fancy-work 
of  any  description,"  said  Bertha;  "it  is  more  to  have 
something  in  her  hands  that  she  works.  She  does  it 
elegantly,  but  she  never  goes  into  raptures  as  we  do  over 
all  sorts  of  lovely  things." 

' '  She  is  not  of  the  rapturous  kind,  are  you,  Helen  ? " 
laughed  Kitty. 

' '  Not  of  that  kind  of  rapture,  certainly.  But,  Bertha, 
let  me  tell  you,  if  you  had  ever  had  your  own  sewing  to 
do,  it  would  have  made  a  great  difference;  you  would  have 
fallen  out  of  love  with  stitches. " 

' '  Ye-es,  she  would  find  it  odd, "  drawled  Andrew  tak 
ing  in  the  indolent  lines  of  Bertha's  half  reclining  figure 
as  she  did  her  best  to  fill  one  of  the  large  easy-chairs. 

"That  was  too  much  for  you,  my  dear,"  said  Mrs. 
Edgerly. 

' '  Oh,  I  have  almost  none  of  it  to  do  now, "  cried  the 
girl  quickly. 

"But  I  can't  imagine  how  an  artist  can  help  admir- 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  157 

ing  exquisite  embroidery,"  said  Kitty.  "  You  can't  deny 
that  it's  beautiful. " 

"I  don't  deny  it.  It  is  beautiful,  of  its  kind,  but 
you  claim  too  much  for  it.  I  think  it  is  like  what 
some  one  said  about  chess:  not  of  importance  enough 
for  a  study,  and  too  laborious  for  an  amusement." 

Bertha  shook  her  head,   and  Kitty  answered, 

' '  You  will  find  a  very  general  dissent  from  both  those 
assertions. " 

"Yes,  I  am  aware  of  that.  The  needle  infatuation 
in  America  is  one  of  the  most  striking  anachronisms  of 
this  century.  Here  we  are  preaching  the  enfranchise 
ment  of  women,  and  acting  upon  it  too;  yet  we  go  wild 
with  desire  to  reproduce  the  one  special  evidence  of  their 
restricted  lives.  The  reason  women  embroidered  so 
beautifully  in  the  middle  ages,  was  only  because  there 
was  nothing  else  open  to  them.  They  were  shut  up  in 
their  castles  and  their  convents,  any  knowledge  of  the 
outside  world  was  forbidden,  and  if  they  gained  it  at 
all  it  was  only  by  stealth;  books  were  unknown,  poetry 
and  music  were  taught  by  the  minstrels  alone,  and  we 
should  not  probably  admire  their  style.  Women  had 
only  their  needles,  and  they  won  a  fame  with  these.  It 
was  a  thing  to  be  very  proud  of  in  the  dark  ages,  but 
I  can't  see  that  it  is  to-day." 

"Do  you   mean   that   domesticity   is   out   of  date? 


158  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

asked  Andrew,  in  answer  to  a  look  that  swept  over 
Kitty's  face. 

"No,  Mr.  Mason.  Those  poor  ladies  could  never 
have  turned  amazons  without  brutalizing  the  world;  they 
had  to  train  the  knights  in  their  castles,  or  else  the  soul 
in  chivalry  would  never  have  awaked.  Women  have 
the  same  task  to-day;  but  life  is  more  exacting,  and  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  needlework  is  not  enough  to 
meet  its  demands." 

"But  remember,"  said  Jenny,  "this  is  only  one  of 
the  modern  accomplishments.  We  have  '  ologies '  and 
'  isms '  by  the  dozen  to  be  conquered  besides. " 

' '  That's  just  the  trouble.  If  you  are  going  to  make 
needlework  an  art,  you  must  put  your  soul  into  it;  and 
in  this  age  the  thing  is  next  to  impossible,  and  not 
worth  doing,  if  it  could  be  done.  Why,  think  of  those 
queenly  dames  of  old,  how  they  watched,  through  nar 
row  castle  windows,  their  knights  go  far  away  to  battle, 
while  they  themselves  were  imprisoned  in  their  own 
homes  for  months  and  years  with  their  sorrows  and  their 
hopes.  Think  of  them,  with  meager  news,  without  a 
glimpse  of  the  outside  world,  surrounded  by  their  at 
tendants.  Stitches  were  their  only  resource.  No  won 
der  their  tapestries  are  records  of  woman's  love  and 
woman's  genius.  She  was  not  permitted  to  seek,  and 
maybe  save,  her  lover  in  time  of  illness;  but  she  could 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  159 

depict  his  triumphs  on  the  battle-field,  his  dangers,  his 
imprisonment,  perhaps,  and  death.  So  she  stitched  her 
heart  history  into  her  tapestry.  Such  a  life  is  impossible 
now. " 

"We  are  aware  of  that,"  said  Kitty;  "but  we  still 
have  a  little  time  left  for  embroidery." 

' '  Yes,  '  a  little  time, '  the  odds  and  ends  of  our  sum 
mer  travels,  and  winter  gayeties.  When  people  combine 
attempts  to  imitate  elaborate  ancient  needlework  with  an 
admiration  of  the  broad  style  of  painting,  doesn't  that 
show  you  what  all  the  admiration  amounts  to  ?  There 
is  no  genuine  love  for  art  in  it." 

"O  Helen,"  cried  Bertha,  "you  are  very  much 
mistaken  !  " 

' '  No,  I  am  not.  Needlework  is  only  a  fashionable 
pastime  to  us;  to  the  ladies  of  old  it  was  a  life-labor. 
And  every  art  is  a  life-labor.  If  a  work  does  not  de 
mand  of  you  a  consecration,  don't  miscall  it  'art' 
Needlework  as  'art'  is  dead;  it  lives  only  as  dilettan- 
teism.  We  may  give  it  a  great  deal  of  praise  for  its 
prettiness  and  daintiness,  but  it  is  not  worth  enthusiasm. " 

' '  I  beg  to  differ  with  you, "  said  Kitty  haughtily.  ' '  I 
have  seen  exquisite  landscapes  wrought  with  a  needle." 

"A  picture  is  of  value,"  answered  Helen,  "not  for 
what  it  represents  so  much  as  for  the  thoughts  it  sug 
gests.  You  may  say  at  first  that  still  life  cannot  come 


160  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

under  this  head,  but  if  you  think  of  it,  you  will  see  it 
does.  For  instance,  you  are  looking  at  a  quiet  lake, 
the  shadows  from  the  overhanging  trees  on  its  bank  sleep 
upon  it,  the  clouds  as  they  float  in  a  dream  through  the 
summer  sky  darken  the  transparent  water.  No  man  or 
beast  is  there  to  break  the  hush;  it  is  'still  life,'  but, 
nevertheless,  it  is  life.  For  if  a  wind  should  come,  how 
it  would  toss  the  branches  of  these  trees,  and  whirl  the 
clouds  along  !  All  the  possible  moods  of  nature  may 
awake  on  this  lake,  its  very  stillness  impresses  you  as  a 
transient  thing;  you  watch  to  see  a  quiver  in  the  shad 
ows,  and  as  you  look  at  them,  they  seem  to  shift.  How 
much  of  all  this  do  you  get  in  needle  pictures  ?  You 
have  no  shadow,  to  begin  with.  I  mean,  nothing  worth 
calling  shadow." 

"Oh,  you're  too  sweeping  in  your  judgments,  Helen/ 
cried  Bertha,  rising  and  going  to  the  closet  for  her 
basket  of  worsted.  ' '  Don't  you  think  so,  Andrew  ?  " 

"Perhaps  so.  Something  of  what  she  sees  in  a  pic 
ture  may  have  to  be  in  the  eyes  of  the  gazer.  You  are 
a  little  sweeping,  Miss  Helen,  for  the  rest  of  us;  but 
there's  a  great  deal  to  sweep — so  perhaps,  you  might  as 
well  go  ahead." 

' '  I  don't  believe  I  agree  with  you,  either, "  said  Jenny. 
"Let  me  think  it  over,  and  I'll  tell  you." 

"Do,"  laughed    Helen,    "while   I   go   for   the   other 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  l6l 

shade  of  purple  which  I  must  have  left  upstairs.  I 
thought  I  had  brought  them  all  down.  Remember, 
when  I  come  back  I  shall  count  upon  your  support." 

But  she  was  gone  so  long  that  when  she  came  back 
they  had  wandered  far  away  from  the  subject  of  their 
discussion. 

' '  Couldn't  you  find  what  you  wanted  ? "  asked  Andrew, 
seeing  a  troubled  expression  in  her  face. 

"Yes,  after  I  had  searched  several  drawers,  and  gone 
to  the  depths  of  the  Saratoga;  it  had  fallen  out  from  the 
package,  and  slipped  under  some  of  the  sheets  of  crayon 
paper  in  the  bottom  of  my  trunk.  I  can't  imagine  how 
it  happened." 

"You  were  very  patient,"  said  Bertha. 

' '  I  knew  it  must  be  somewhere,  for  I  bought  it  a  few 
weeks  ago,  and  have  not  used  a  needleful." 

"No  wonder  it  annoyed  you,"  Jenny  said;  "  'the  per 
versity  of  inanimate  things '  is  dreadfully  aggravating. " 

"I  didn't  know  I  looked  annoyed;  but  if  I  did,  it 
was  not  at  that." 

"What  was  it,   then?" 

"How  sharply  Aunt  Kitty  speaks  sometimes,"  thought 
her  niece.  ' '  I  wonder  if  she  is  conscious  of  it  herself? " 

Helen  paused.  She  had  caught  the  shrill  tones  heard 
through  the  door  on  the  night  of  her  arrival 

"It  was  nothing  of  much  consequence,  but  I  can't  see 


1 62  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

how  it  was  possible  to  lose  it,  for  it  was  in  my  trunk, 
and  I  always  keep  that  locked,  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's  request. " 

"Yes,  my  dear,  we  hope  to  have  honest  servants,  and 
we  do  generally,  I  know;  but  it's  best  to  put  valuables 
out  of  the  way,  and  then  nobody  is  tempted." 

"But  in  spite  of  this  precaution,  you  see  Miss  Helen 
has  lost  something,"  said  Mason. 

"It's  not  that  the  thing  is  of  any  value,  it  is  only  I 
wonder  how  it  could  possibly  be  gone." 

"May  I  inquire  what  is  this  mysterious  'it'?"  asked 
Mrs.  Mason. 

"Only  that  little  phial  of  the  cough  mixture  I  brought 
here  to  Lowton  with  me.  I  care  nothing  about  it,  but 
it  was  certainly  in  my  trunk,  and  I  know  I  have  not 
taken  it  out  to  use  since  the  night  you  would  not  try  it. " 

"I  believe  that,"  muttered  Kitty,  so  low  that  her  hus 
band  only  who  was  nearest  heard  her  words. 

"Ask  the  chambermaid,"  said  Mrs.  Edgerly.  "Please 
ring,  Andrew." 

The  girl  knew  nothing  of  the  phial,  had  not  seen  it. 

"Certainly  not,"  commented  Kitty  in  her  former  tones, 
with  only  her  former  auditor.  Then,  when  the  girl  had 
gone,  she  said  aloud,  ' '  This  loss  does  as  well  to  get  up  a 
mystery  about  as  anything  else,  for  a  little  diversion  this 
dull  weather,  when  there  seems  to  be  a  dearth  of  callers 
and  every  other  kind  of  amusement;  but  you  will  find 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  163 

the  phial  when  you  look  carefully  enough,  for  I'm  sure 
nobody  would  want  to  share  that  delectable  stuff  with 
you." 

"Kitty!"  said  her  husband. 

Mrs.   Mason  glanced  at  him  anxiously. 

"Don't  take  me  au  serieux,  Helen,  but  I  can't  help 
laughing  to  think  of  its  being  that  nasty  little  bottle  you 
are  troubled  about.  If  it  were  mine,  all  I  should  be 
afraid  of  would  be  its  turning  up." 

"I  told  you  I  did  not  care  for  the  thing;  I  only 
wonder  at  its  being  gone." 

"Kitty  said  nothing  this  time,  but  she  looked  at 
the  speaker  with  a  smile  and  nod  of  assent. 

"When  I  lose  anything,"  said  Bertha,  "I  never  mind, 
unless  I  want  it  that  moment.  I  wait,  and  it  turns  up." 

"I  do  sometimes,"  added  Jenny,  "when  it's  nothing 
of  importance." 

Helen  said  no  more;  but  her  unpleasant  impression 
remained.  She  knew  it  must  be  only  dislike  which 
made  her  fancy  in  Kitty's  smile  a  peculiar  meaning  be 
sides  her  malice,  always  ready  to  enjoy  everything  an 
noying  to  one  it  followed  with  petty  persecutions.  But 
this  loss,  trivial  in  itself,  tended  to  fix  in  her  mind  a 
sense  of  something  being  strange  and  wrong. 

She  remembered  now  an  incident  she  had  thought 
odd,  but  only  so  inasmuch  as  it  was  a  liberty  she  would 


164  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

not  have  taken.  The  evening  before  she  had  gone  into 
her  room  and  found  Kitty  there  carefully  looking  over 
one  of  her  boxes  of  paints  and  brushes.  Helen  judged 
that  they  all  might  have  received  the  same  attention,  for 
they  stood  on  the  table  before  her.  Bertha  was  watching 
her,  and  the  two  were  talking.  Helen  did  not  hear  what 
they  said. 

Kitty  turned  at  once  and  apologized.  She  knesv 
Helen  would  excuse  her;  there  was  nothing  especially 
private  about  painting  materials;  they  were  not  like 
one's  letters. 

She  explained  that  part  of  a  lily  petal  had  been 
broken  out  from  the  inlaid  work  of  the  table  in  her 
room,  and  she  wanted  to  cover  the  loss  by  a  little 
white  paint.  She  was  provoked  with  herself,  because 
for  the  past  two  days  she  had  forgotten  to  ask  Helen 
for  it.  She  thought  of  it  now  while  passing  her  door, 
and  made  bold  to  take  it  first,  and  get  permission 
afterwards. 

"Is  this  the  right  kind,  and  may  I  have  some  of  it?" 
she  added  laughing. 

There  was  nothing  in  this  to  seem  more  than  some 
what  strange  in  a  lady  of  Kitty's  standing,  nothing  in 
any  one  of  the  little  things  she  remembered,  when  taken 
by  itself,  but  when  summed  up,  they  had  together  an 
unpleasant  look  of  surveillance. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  165 

Mrs.  Edgerly  was  goodness  itself  to  her,  Mr.  Mason 
was  a  friend,  and  Bertha — was  Bertha,  with  strange 
ways  sometimes,  but,  she  was  sure,  not  intending  any 
thing  unkind  toward  her.  Helen  had  had  a  gay  winter, 
yet  she  was  again  glad  her  visit  was  almost  over. 

It  seemed  unlikely  that  any  one  would  call  that  even 
ing,  for  the  dismal  weather  culminated  in  a  persistent 
rain,  which  increased  to  a  violent  storm  before  mid 
night.  But  Mr.  Dewey  dropped  in,  and  half  an  hour 
later  Holden  appeared. 

Kitty  was  delighted;  they  were  not  to  have  a  dull 
evening,  after  all.  She  liked  Jack,  and  there  was  no 
longer  any  danger  of  Helen's  influence.  If  the  first 
warning  had  proved  insufficient,  she  had  a  far  graver 
one  to  give.  She  saw  he  still  admired  her,  but  he  was 
afraid  of  her,  and  the  girl  was  proud;  there  could  be 
nothing  feigned  in  that,  unless,  possibly,  her  withdrawal 
was  to  lead  him  on.  She  had  not  done  this,  however, 
and  now  she  was  going  home.  Kitty  breathed  freely 
at  last,  and  welcomed  Holden  with  a  satisfaction  that 
she  had  not  always  felt,  however  cordial  her  manner. 

After  the  first  words  of  greeting,  and  the  few  remarks 
of  a  commonplace  nature  that  usually  follow  the  en 
trance  of  a  visitor,  there  seemed  great  danger  of  the 
evening  turning  out  at  least  a  very  quiet  one,  in  spite 
of  Mrs.  Mason's  valiant  efforts.  Mr.  Dewev  was  at  the 


1 66  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

further  end  of  the  room  talking  to  Bertha.  From  occa 
sional  phrases,  they  seemed  to  be  discussing  some  ques 
tion  of  conventionality;  but  whatever  the  topic,  it  was 
plain  they  were  not  anxious  to  make  it  general,  and 
after  two  unsuccessful  attempts  by  Kitty  to  bring  them 
into  the  circle,  they  were  left  undisturbed.  Andrew  was 
very  quiet;  Helen  said  scarcely  anything;  Jenny  was  too 
much  occupied  with  some  subject  of  cogitation  to  be 
able  to  do  her  best;  and  Mr.  Holden  was,  for  him, 
stupid. 

Kitty  looked  across  at  her  aunt  in  despair. 

Mrs.  Edgerly  was  knitting.  The  click  of  her  nee 
dles  was  very  audible  at  times,  then  there  would  come  a 
sudden  cessation  of  the  sound,  her  hands  would  fall  by 
degrees  into  her  lap,  and  she  would  gently  bend  her 
head  as  in  profound  meditation.  At  these  times  Kitty 
always  asked  her  some  question,  and  Mrs.  Edgerly 
answered  quite  at  length,  turning  upon  her  niece  a 
pair  of  wide-open  eyes  with  a  slightly  abashed  expres 
sion  in  them.  Kitty  began  to  grow  desperate,  when 
it  occurred  to  her  that  if  she  could  not  make  anybody 
talk,  she  could  find  some  excuse  for  their  being  so 
silent. 

"Will  you  give  us  some  music,  Jenny?" 

Miss  Grierson  rose  reluctantly;  if  she  were  playing, 
she  could  not  hear  in  case  the  door-bell  should  rinor 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  167 

again,  and  she  had  been  listening  for  it  the  last  hour. 
But  having  begun  to  play  she  forgot  everything  in  her 
music. 

' '  Mendelssohn  wrote  those  '  Songs  without  Words ' 
for  such  interpreters  as  you,  Miss  Grierson,"  said  Jack, 
as  she  left  the  piano  with  the  echoes  of  the  "Venetian 
Gondolier's  Boat  Song "  still  floating  through  the  room. 

Even  the  music  failed  to  have  any  inspiriting  effect 
upon  the  party,  and  Jack  was  about  to  go  home,  feel 
ing  he  might  as  well  not  have  come,  when  Andrew 
asked, 

"What  do  you  say  to  a  game  of  whist,  Holden  ? 
You  are  generally  ready.  Jenny,  we  count  upon  you; 
and,  Miss  Helen,  I  know  from  what  you  said  this 
morning,  you  are  not  so  devoted  to  that  pretty  piece 
of  work  that  you  can't  lend  us  a  hand." 

Helen  was  going  to  refuse,  but  he  looked  so  in  ear 
nest  about  it,  she  yielded.  Jenny  did  not  play,  and 
Bertha  volunteered  to  take  her  place.  Kitty  who  had 
been  intending  to  offer  her  services,  leaned  back  again 
contentedly  in  her  chair,  and  the  game  began. 

But  it  could  not  be  called  a  scientific  one,  for  it  re 
quires  at  least  as  much  concentration  to  play  whist  as 
to  talk,  and  both  feats  cannot  be  successfully  performed 
at  once.  Bertha  paid  no  heed  to  this  rule,  she  was 
constantly  turning  to  say  something  to  Mr.  Dewey  who 


1 68  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

had  taken  his  place  behind  her.  proposing  to  be  a  silent 
partner  and  amuse  himself  by  looking  on,  but,  instead, 
he  dictated  all  her  movements  to  the  secret  indignation 
of  Holden,  her  partner,  and  when  she  demurred  at  any 
of  his  suggestions,  argued  so  lengthily  in  his  sibilant  half- 
whisper  that  Andrew  finally  drawled  out, 

' '  This  is  what  you  mean  by  being  a  silent  partner, 
Mr.  Dewey  ? " 

"Well,  no,"  answered  the  young  man  with  a  laugh. 
"I  have  been  quite  active,  I  admit,  and  done  good 
service,  too;  but  I'll  draw  off  now,  upon  honor." 

Yet  he  did  this  for  a  time  only,  and  the  rill  of  con 
versation,  that  never  quite  ceased,  grew  gradually  into 
a  larger  stream.  Kitty  was  very  quiet;  she  knew  that 
her  husband  liked  a  good  game,  so  she  took  up  a  book 
and  watched  the  players  between  the  turning  of  her 
leaves.  But  Jenny,  at  her  uncle's  hand,  looked  far 
wiser  than  wisdom  ever  does,  and  asked  questions  of 
him  and  of  Mr.  Dewey,  until  Holden  in  a  safe  moment 
glanced  at  Andrew  with  despairing  annoyance. 

Andrew  answered  by  a  slight  shrug  of  the  shoulders, 
so  philosophical  that  Jack's  equanimity  was  restored  at 
once,  and  he  felt  even  amused  at  his  own  discomfiture. 

Helen's  play  was  at  first  almost  as  vexatious  as  Ber 
tha's,  for,  though  she  spoke  very  little,  her  thoughts  were 
plainly  not  upon  her  cards,  and  she  made  a  number  of 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  169 

mistakes.  But  at  last  she  roused  Kerself,  and  by  taking 
a  clever  advantage  of  Bertha's  failures,  atoned  for  her 
carelessness  so  well  that  she  and  Andrew  came  off 
victorious. 

She  nodded  across  the  table  with  a  triumphant  smile 
at  her  partner  as  the  result  was  declared.  Holden  saw 
it.  as  he  had  seen  everything  she  had  done  that 
evening. 

"I  perceive,"  he  said  looking  into  her  face  and  touch 
ing  her  cards  lightly  as  they  lay  on  the  table  before  her, 
"you  are  one  of  those  people  who  come  out  right  in  the 
long  run." 

' '  Am  I  ? "  she  answered,  straightening  her  pile  as  she 
spoke  and  turning  her  eyes  upon  Andrew,  whose  atten 
tion  Dewey  had  claimed. 

"But  I  understand  it's  not  the  winning  you  enjoy," 
Holden  went  on,  "only  the  excitement  of  the  game; 
and  to  please  Mason,  if  he  likes  success,"  he  added 
in  a  lower  tone. 

This  time  Helen  looked  at  him  steadily. 

"You  do  not  understand  at  all,"  she  said,  "if  you 
think  that.  I  care  very  much  indeed  for  winning  in 
every  game  I  ever  play,  and  so  does  everybody  who 
comprehends  what  success  means.  Don't  you  care  ? " 

"Not  always.  Probably,"  he  continued,  "because  / 
do  not  understand  what  success  means." 


170  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"If  not,"  she  answered  him,  "you  are  right;  it  is  be 
cause  you  do  not  comprehend  it." 

Holden  had  not  been  fortunate  in  his  choice  of  subject. 

' '  Is  she  this  to  me  only, "  he  wondered,  "  or  to  every 
one  ? " 

' '  Tell  me,  then,  what  you  mean  by  success  ? "  he  said. 
' '  What  is  there  in  it  more  than  a  name  ?  Is  it  not, 
after  all,  merely  an  empty  husk  ? " 

But  Helen  did  not  hear;  she  was  listening  to  Mr. 
Dewey  with  an  expression  of  dissent  and  suppressed  ex 
citement,  that  deepened  as  he  went  on.  He  had  gone 
back  to  the  subject  of  conventionalities,  and  was  speak 
ing  of  a  lady  friend  of  his,  who  had  permitted  her  niece 
to  call  upon  a  young  girl  she  had  met  somewhere  and 
greatly  liked. 

' '  Mrs.  Wetherbee  gave  her  consent, "  explained  Mr. 
Dewey  apologetically,  "because  Julia  was  so  bent  upon 
it.  But  the  worst  of  it  was,  that  when  the  girl  returned 
the  visit,  after  a  proper  time,  Julia  wanted  to  go  off  and 
see  her  again  directly." 

"What,  straight  off?"  laughed  Mrs.   Mason. 

' '  Oh,  no,  but  just  as  she  would  have  done  with  any 
of  her  friends  whom  it  would  be  desirable  to  cultivate; 
and  it  would  never  answer,  because — "  and  the  corners 
of  his  mouth  elevated  themselves  still  higher,  while  he 
twirled  one  way  and  the  other,  between  his  fingers,  a 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  171 

rosebud  he  had  taken  from  a  vase  on  the  table — "she 
isn't  in  our  set,  you  see,  so  it  would  not  do  to  pay  her 
too  much  attention." 

"Fortunate  for  her,"  muttered  Andrew  in  an  aside  to 
Hoklen. 

"Yes,  'it  would  not  do  to  pay  her  too  much  atten 
tion;'  those  are  the  very  words  Mrs.  Wetherbee  said; 
they  struck  me  as  being  so  conclusive." 

"Ye-es,  they  are,  very,"  assented  Andrew;  "very  con 
clusive  indeed,  I  should  say." 

' '  Probably  the  girl  was  not  in  any  respect  such  a  friend 
as  she  would  choose  for  her  niece,"  Kitty  suggested, 
"and  she  said  this,  not  wishing  to  criticise  her  any 
more  unkindly  to  Julia." 

"No,  no,"  protested  Dewey,  "that's  not  so  at  all,  I 
assure  you;  she  never  minds  what  she  says  of  people, 
only  not  to  their  faces.  She  told  me  she  didn't  know 
when  she  had  seen  a  young  girl  with  prettier  manners, 
and,  from  what  she  had  learned  of  her,  a  nicer  young 
lady  in  herself,  but  it  was  out  of  the  question  she  should 
pay  her  much  attention." 

Helen's  eyes  were  fixed  upon  the  speaker,  and  the  flash 
of  scorn  that  had  passed  over  her  face,  still  lighted  it  as 
she  said  with  slow  distinction, 

"Mrs.  Wetherbee  must  have  a  scant  foothold  in  her 
set;  it  can't  be  her  birthright." 


172  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Oh,  I  assure  you  that  is  a  mistake,"  cried  Dewey; 
"there  can  be  no  doubt  about  her  right  to  her  posi 
tion;  but  she  goes  into  society  a  great  deal,  and  knows 
how  things  would  be  considered.  She  is  a  thorough 
going  aristocrat,  elegant  and  feminine,  gracious,  and, 
as  one  can  easily  see,  blue-blooded;  there  is  always  a 
cool,  high-bred  languor  about  her.  And  as  to  her 
friends,  she  was  telling  me  the  other  day  she  was  not 
acquainted  socially  with  a  single  person  who  worked 
for  a  living;  she  could  not  have  meant  gentlemen  in 
business,  but  anything  like  class  work.  So  you  see, 
she  certainly  does  know  how  her  taking  up  this  girl 
would  be  considered.  It  seems  a  pity,  now  and  then, 
that  such  things  must  be;  but,  beyond  question,  the} 
must."  And  Mr.  Dewey  ended  with  the  satisfaction  of 
one  who  has  made  opposition  impossible. 

There  was  a  short  pause.  Helen  looked  at  Mr.  Ma 
son.  He  would  surely  speak. 

But  Andrew  sat  silent,  watching  her  with  a  smile  that 
refused  to  give  place  to  either  indignation  or  sarcasm 
at  such  an  assertion. 

Unconsciously  she  turned  to  Hoklen  with  an  invol 
untary  faith  in  him.  But  neither  had  he  any  word  to 
say.  She  did  not  know  that  both  men  were  waiting 
for  her  to  utter  the  protest  written  on  her  face,  she 
wondered  that  there  was  nobody  to  defend  a  law  higher 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  173 

than   this   shallow   expedient.     It   was   not   Mr.    Dewey 
alone  whom  she  answered. 

"Such  things  are  a  necessity  to  certain  people,"  she 
said,  "only  because  their  dignity  is  too  weak  to  come 
out  from  entrenchments.  I  never  heard  of  Mrs.  Weth- 
erbee  before,  but  she  is  not  a  genuine  aristocrat.  So 
cial  cowardice  is  a  sign  of  insecurity  of  position." 

"I'm  not  sure  I  quite  understand  you,"  sneered  Mr. 
Dewey;  "but  it's  of  no  consequence.  May  I  be  per 
mitted  to  inquire  what  you  call  a  'genuine  aristocrat'?" 

"The  narrowest  definition  you  can  give  it,"  she  an 
swered,  "must  include  birth  and  station  that  put  their 
possessor  above  the  fear  of  people  he  knows  to  be  only 
equals,  at  best." 

"That  is  the  only  definition  there  is,   Miss  Bell." 

"Then  you  admit  that  the  lady  you  were  speaking 
of  does  not  come  under  it  ? " 

' '  I  admit  no  such  thing.  I  say  she  does.  But  peo 
ple  of  this  class  are  always  exceedingly  exclusive,  not 
from  necessity,  but  by  choice.  Look  at  the  English 
aristocracy;  they  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  com 
mon  people." 

"Their  walls  of  caste  seem  to  be  of  iron,  but  the 
general  breaking  down  of  ancient  privileges  threatens  even 
these.  I  am  glad  you  spoke  of  the  English,  for  it  is  by 
the  representatives  of  this  haughty  aristocracy  that  I  can 


174  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

answer  your  question.  You  know  there  are  some  among 
them  who  give  not  only  their  influence  and  wealth,  but 
themselves,  with  their  abundant  leisure,  to  bettering  the 
condition  of  men  and  women  that  excessive  ignorance 
and  excessive  labor  are  brutalizing.  They  don't  enter 
into  the  work  as  a  fashionable  charity,  but  as  a  tardy 
justice  to  their  fellow-men.  Because  they  have  all  the 
gifts  of  fortune  they  feel  themselves  the  more  bound  to 
work  hardest  in  the  best  lines  of  labor  the  world  offers. 
The  Head  of  the  Universe  works,  and  work  ranks  idle 
ness.  It  is  not  likely  that  their  manners  are  languid,  but 
they  have  no  seamy  side  to  fret  the  tender  skin  of  poverty 
and  suffering.  You  asked  me  what  I  called  '  a  genuine 
aristocrat,'  I  answer  you — one  of  these." 

"So  far  as  I  have  capacity  to  understand  you,  Miss 
Bell,  one  must  go  down  into  the  slums  in  order  to  get 
up  on  the  heights.  No  doubt  this  is  all  evident  enough 
to  you." 

"  It  is  a  law  of  nature,  Mr.  Dewey,  that  one  must  bend 
the  knee  to  mount." 

"Bending  down  to  the  slums  would  be  too  far  for  my 
taste.  I  confess  I  couldn't  stand  the  odor." 

"I  suppose  not.  It  takes  my  lord  duke  or  my  lady 
duchess  to  do  that  sort  of  thing  well. "  . 

"They  don't  touch  them  with  the  tips  of  their  ringers," 
retorted  Dewey,  an  angry  light  in  his  eyes. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  175 

"They  go  down  among  these  people  who  are  ill  in 
mind  and  body,  and  lay  their  hands  upon  them.  They 
are  building  up  that  brotherhood  which  is  to  be  an  aris 
tocracy  of  work,  in  which  men  will  strive  not  to  have 
most,  but  to  do  best" 

' '  I'm  afraid  their  ranks  will  fill  up  slowly, "  sneered 
Dewey. 

' '  It  will  bring  back  the  old  meaning  of  the  word  in 
a  higher  sense,  '  the  power  of  the  most  worthy, '  and  that 
worth  will  be  in  character,  and  will  admit  members  from 
all  classes." 

' '  I've  heard  young  ladies  sentimentalize  a  great  many 
times,"  returned  Dewey,  "but  I  have  never  had  the 
pleasure  of  hearing  quite  so  much  imagination  at  once 
before.  It  appears  you  are  predicting  an  overturn  of  all 
well-founded  social  observances,  and  the  establishment 
of  some  power  of  very  mixed-up  people  that,  as  far  as  I 
can  make  out,  would  only  be  an  army  of  hobby-riders 
riding  to — I  mean,  a  set  of  enthusiasts  without  any  laws 
except  their  own  sweet  wills,  or  any  leader.  To  say  the 
least  of  it,  it's  very  amusing." 

' '  '  No  leader  ? ' "  repeated  Helen.  Her  face  grew  pale, 
and  her  eyes  filled  with  light.  She  was  silenced  a  mo 
ment  by  her  own  intensity  of  feeling.  Then  she  spoke 
her  sudden  insight  like  an  inspiration. 

"There  \vas  once  a  great  ruler,"  she  said — "you  re- 


176  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

member  the  story — he  called  himself  a  king  over  kings, 
'  whom  he  would,  he  slew,  and  whom  he  would,  he  kept 
alive.'  One  night  he  had  a  vision.  He  saw  a  great 
image  with  a  head  of  gold  and  a  body  of  other  metals. 
Then  a  stone,  formed  without  hands,  fell  upon  this  image 
and  ground  it  to  powder,  and  the  stone  became  a  great 
mountain  and  filled  the  whole  earth.  The  image  repre 
sented  the  dynasties  of  himself  and  the  succeeding  kings; 
the  stone  cut  out  without  hands  a  kingdom  hereafter  to 
be  set  up  on  the  earth  by  other  than  human  power.  No 
wonder  Nebuchadnezzar  trembled  as  he  dreamed  of 
Christ;  all  unnatural  authority,  weighty  or  light,  trembles 
before  the  brotherhood  of  man.  The  Mount  on  which 
the  Sermon  was  spoken  is  filling  the  whole  earth.  It  was 
intended  that  in  its  Speaker — our  Divine  Leader  in  all 
movements  toward  the  freedom  of  righteousness  —  all 
classes  should  meet.  He  was  born  in  a  manger,  a  car 
penter  by  trade,  yet  He  was  descended  from  a  line  of 
kings.  But  His  throne  was  built  upon  deeper  founda 
tions;  His  nobles  were  to  be  not  from  Judea  alone,  but 
from  every  nation.  Beauty  of  character,  purity  of  thought, 
high  purpose,  and  service  from  the  highest  to  the  hum 
blest,  are  evidences  that  their  possessors  are  children  of 
the  only  Royalty  that  will  endure,  inheritors  of  the  treas 
ures  of  the  ages,  and  heirs  of  the  future.  When  God 
decrees,  we — " 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  177 

Suddenly  some  cruel  reminder  of  the  present  brought 
back  to  Helen  the  remembrance  of  who  were  her  auditors. 

The  look  of  exaltation  faded  from  her  countenance, 
and  its  glowing  pallor  was  replaced  by  a  flush  that  crim 
soned  the  downcast  face  which  the  instant  before  had  been 
uplifted  in  self-forgetful  enthusiasm. 

The  silence  that  followed  her  words  was  sharp  with 
agony  to  her;  she  endured  it  only  for  a  moment.  Was 
it  Kitty's  eyes  fixed  steadily  upon  her  that  had  brought 
this  overwhelming  consciousness  ?  She  rose  and  moved 
toward  the  door. 

When  she  reached  it,  Holden  stood  there  to  open  it 
for  her.  She  did  not  look  at  him  as  she  passed  out 
His  face  was  very  pale,  and  his  eyes  followed  her  until 
she  was  out  of  sight. 

"Why,  what's  that?"  asked  Mrs.  Edgerly  whom  the 
closing  of  the  door  roused  from  a  long  and  somewhat 
profound  meditation.'  "Why  has  Helen  gone  away?" 
she  added  looking  about  her. 

No  one  answered  immediately  at  last  Bertha  said, 

' '  She  grew  so  excited  talking,  I  suppose  she  said  more 
than  she  meant,  and  so  went  to  cool  off.  How  ex 
citable  she  is  sometimes  !  " 

"What  she  said  was  beautiful,"  cried  Jenny.  "I 
believe  every  word  of  it." 

' '  Can  you,   indeed  ?  "  inquired  Mr.   Dewey. 


178  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Andrew  smiled.  He  was  amused  to  notice  how  dif 
ferently  the  young  man  had  spoken  of  Helen,  and  how 
little  attention  he  had  paid  her  since  the  day  when,  in 
the  course  of  conversation,  he  had  learned  from  himself 
that  she  was  without  wealth  or  brilliant  prospects. 

Kitty  said  nothing;  her  lips  were  closed  like  a  vise, 
and  her  eyes  had  an  expression  Mason  did  not  like. 

"What  was  Helen  talking  about?"  asked  Mrs.  Edger- 
ly.  "I  must  have  gone  off  into  a  reverie.  I  do  some 
times.  " 

"Ye-es,"  remarked  Andrew. 

"When  I  am  so  lost,"  pursued  the  lady,  "that  I  don't 
hear  what  any  one  about  me  is  saying  until  my  mind 
comes  to  the  present  again.  What  could  Helen  have 
got  so  earnest  about  ? " 

"A  social  problem,"  Kitty  answered. 

"Mr.  Dewey  had  been  telling  us  something  a  lady 
did,  grandmamma,  and  she  didn't  like  it  at  all." 

' '  Mrs.  Wetherbee,  was  it  ?  I  heard  her  name.  I 
used  to  know  her  slightly  when  she  was  a  school  girl, 
but  I  have  never  seen  her  since  her  marriage.  She 
married  very  well,  I  understood.  She  was  a  remarkably 
pretty  girl,  and  had  quite  charming  manners,  though  her 
father  did  make  his  money  by  selling  rum." 

The  shout  of  laughter,  from  Jenny  and  Bertha,  that 
followed  this  statement,  bewildered  Mrs.  Edgerly.  She 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  179 

heard,  too,  a  low  "Ha,  ha!"  from  Andrew,  and  saw 
the  amusement  in  his  face. 

"The  blue  blood  is  slightly  diluted  with  alcohol,  Mr. 
Dewey,"  he  drawled,  "and  it  is  this  which  produces 
the  undue  elation  in  her  that  Miss  Bell  divined  so 
readily. " 

"  H'm ! "  said  Kitty  significantly.  "I  think,"  she 
added,  after  a  pause,  "we  all  of  us  have  enough  to  do 
in  removing  the  beams  from  our  own  eyes,  instead  of 
spying  out  our  neighbors'  motes." 

"So  do  I,   my  dear,"  answered  her  husband. 

They  began  to  talk  of  other  things. 

"Mr.  Holder!,"  cried  Bertha,  at  last,  "you  have  nof 
spoken  one  single  word  for  the  last  half  hour;  not  since 
Helen  prevented  our  having  a  second  game  of  cards. 
What  can  you  be  thinking  of?" 

' '  Perhaps  he  is  in  one  of  Mrs.  Edgerly's  reveries, ' 
said  Jenny  in  an  undertone. 

"I  am  thinking  it  is  time  for  me  to  go  home,  Miss 
Edgerly,"  responded  Jack  with  gravity. 

Bertha  was  secretly  of  the  same  mind;  if  he  could  not 
be  a  little  more  entertaining. 

But  Jack  Holden,  as  he  went  out  into  the  night,  had 
very  little  solicitude  about  Bertha  Edgerly's  opinion  of 
him. 

The  storm  that  faced  him,  as  he  walked  slowly  home, 


180  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

accorded  with  the  arrows  of  his  recollections,  and  the 
wind  of  self-reproach  that  went  through  him. 

The  next  morning,  at  the  earliest  hour  permissible  for 
paying  a  visit,  he  rang  the  bell  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's.  The 
door  was  opened  by  Bertha,  who  had  seen  him  on  the 
pathway. 

"Come  in,  Mr.  Holden,"  she  said  with  a  conscious 
laugh  that  jarred  through  his  nerves,  ' '  and  make  up  for 
your  last  night's  silence.  I  am  sure  it  is  good  of  you 
to  be  so  prompt  to  condole  with  us  on  Helen's  departure. 
You  saw  her  drive  away  ?  " 

"No.     Where?" 

"Why,  home,  of  course.  Where  should  she  go,  pray, 
after  all  this  long  time?  Though  her  going  this  morn 
ing  was  a  sudden  notion.  Yesterday  she  did  not  mean 
to  leave  for  two  or  three  days.  I  thought  perhaps  you 
had  met  the  carriage,  it  has  just  gone  to  the  train.  But 
come  in." 

"No,  thank  you.  I  can  only  say  good  morning  in 
passing.  I  am  going  up  to  town  this  morning.  Any 
commissions  for  me?  Speak  directly,  or  'forever  after 
hold  your  peace,'"  he  added,  laughingly,  looking  at  his 
watch,  however,  with  an  impatience  by  no  means  feigned. 

In  a  moment  he  had  repented  of  his  ill-judged  offer. 
What  if  Bertha  had  any  errands  for  him,  and,  as  her 
way  was,  should  keep  him  talking  ten  minutes,  or  even 


A    LAZY  MAN^S    WORK.  181 

five?  That  would  be  enough  to  make  him  miss  the 
train.  He  had  asked  only  because  he  was  actually  here 
at  the  door,  and  he  must  bridge  over  the  awkwardness 
of  saying  good  morning,  and  good-by  in  the  same 
breath. 

But  this  time  he  fared  better  than  he  deserved,  and 
was  too  grateful  for  Bertha's  not  being  able  at  the  moment 
to  remember  anything,  to  give  time  for  a  reverse  of  for 
tune.  He  bowed  himself  away  directly,  sure  that  this 
was  a  case  in  which  no  second  thoughts  could  be  so  wise 
as  the  first. 

Holden  had  always  believed  that  Lowton  abounded  in 
hacks,  but  this  morning  he  was  not  able  to  get  hold  of 
one,  though  he  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  two  or  three 
whisk  around  distant  corners  while  their  drivers  showed 
that  indifference  to  pedestrians  that  might  be  supposed 
to  come  only  from  absolute  independence  of  the  wants 
of  the  public.  But  by  great  exertion  he  caught  the  train, 
and  swung  himself  breathless  upon  the  last  car  as  it  was 
moving  out  of  the  station. 

After  a  moment's  rest  he  passed  through  it  with  first  a 
hasty  survey  of  its  occupants,  as  if  a  glance  would  enable 
him  to  single  out  the  person  he  sought,  and  then,  as  he 
failed  to  do  this,  making  a  more  careful  examination. 

How  expressive  people's  backs  were;  he  recognized  his 
acquaintances  as  he  came  leisurely  up  behind  them  al- 


1 82  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

most  as  well  as  if  their  faces  had  been  toward  him.  Here 
was  a  respectable  Lowton  merchant  who  delighted  to 
discuss  the  banking  interests;  there  was  a  vacant  place  at 
his  side,  and  Holden  must  walk  by  a  little  faster.  Two 
seats  down  on  the  right  was  a  young  man  like  the  prin 
cess  in  the  fairy-tale  of  the  distaff,  that  would  talk  with 
anybody  about  anything  "from  morn  'till  dewy  eve,  a 
summer's  day,"  and  as  to  the  young  man,  if  the  season 
happened  to  be  winter,  he  was  always  ready  to  make 
up  the  time  by  candlelight.  Jack  must  dodge  him.  But 
he  had  a  spare  seat  too,  and  looking  up  at  the  wrong 
moment,  called  out, 

"Why,   I  say,   Holden!" 

"Ah!  good  morning,  Williams,"  answered  Jack  over 
his  shoulder  as  he  moved  off. 

The  greeting,  however,  aroused  the  attention  of  two 
young  ladies  he  was  passing  at  the  moment,  who  looked 
up  and  repeated  his  name  with  welcoming  smiles,  while 
one  held  out  her  hand  with  a  pretty  show  of  friendliness, 
and  the  other  pointed  to  a  seat  before  them.  Jack 
thought  it  was  a  remarkable  circumstance  that  everybody 
he  preferred  to  avoid  that  morning  should  have  a  vacant 
seat  to  offer  him;  he  hoped  it  would  happen  equally  well 
when  he  should  come  to  the  one  beside  whom  he  wanted 
to  remain.  He  took  the  little  hand  proffered,  and  prom 
ising  to  call  upon  its  owner  before  long,  refused  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  183 

second   offer  with  an   apology  for  his   haste,    and   was 
gone. 

Helen  Bell  was  not  in  this  car,  nor  in  the  next  one. 
He  entered  the  third. 

Here  were  several  people  with  unoccupied  seats  beside 
them.  The  first  lady  he  looked  at  among  these  was 
elderly,  the  second  ordinary,  the  third  wore  heavy  mourn 
ing.  Holden  wondered  how  many  more  cars  he  should 
oe  obliged  to  look  through.  But  he  had  not  gone  far 
up  the  aisle  when  he  saw  before  him  Miss  Bell's  graceful 
shoulders  and  finely  poised  head;  and  saw,  too,  that  his 
present  vigorous  attempt  to  pass  a  few  hours  in  her  com 
pany  had  been  fruitless,  for  at  her  side  sat  Mr.  Knight, 
talking  to  her  in  a  strain  which,  judging  from  her 
attentive  face  and  ready  replies,  she  seemed  to  find 
agreeable. 

Holden  placed  himself  a  few  seats  behind  them.  He 
remembered  what  Mason  had  said  in  regard  to  these  two. 
There  was  nothing  in  Helen's  look  or  manner  to  suggest 
any  deeper  feeling  than  the  enjoyment  of  an  amusing  con 
versation  with  an  acquaintance.  But  a  public  conveyance 
was  the  very  last  place  a  woman  like  Miss  Bell  would  se- ' 
lect  for  any  expression  of  sentiment;  and  there  was  an 
alert  self-satisfaction  in  Knight's  manner  that  troubled 
and  enraged  Holden.  He  did  not  seem  exactly  lover- 
like,  yet  this  might  be  his  way  of  showing  the  security 


1 84  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

of  possession.  Jack  did  not  approve  of  Knight's  manner 
of  doing  anything,  but  every  now  and  then  he  would 
check  sarcastic  inward  comments  on  the  man,  by  the 
remembrance  of  how  humble  he  himself  ought  to  be 
this  morning.  His  feelings,  however,  did  nobody  any 
harm,  unless,  perhaps,  himself.  Knight  kept  his  place 
at  Miss  Bell's  side,  and  H  olden,  who  had  changed  to  a 
seat  left  vacant  behind  them  after  his  entrance,  had  only 
a  passing  word  from  each.  Helen  colored,  and  half 
averted  her  face  on  first  seeing  him,  then  turned,  and 
coldly  bade  him  good  morning.  This  was  all  that  these 
miles  of  travel  had  given  him,  and  this  could  scarcely  be 
called  satisfaction. 

At  the  station  he  fared  not  much  better;  it  was  Knight 
who  helped  her  from  the  train,  and  evidently  intended 
to  accompany  her  home.  While  he  was  giving  direc 
tions  about  the  baggage,  Holden  seized  his  opportunity. 
He  expressed  his  sorrow  at  Miss  Bell's  leaving  Lowton. 
She  thanked  him  with  a  perfect  understanding  of  his  con 
ventional  regrets. 

"  But  I  shall  see  you  again  before  long?  "  he  answered 
eagerly. 

Helen  thought  it  very  doubtful,  she  did  not  know 
when  she  should  be  in  Lowton  again.  ' '  But  it  may 
be,"  she  added,  "for  people  often  meet  unexpectedly. 
Yet,  as  this  is  very  likely  to  be  good-by,  I  will  wish 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  185 

you  health  and  happiness  now,  to  make  sure  of  it, "  she 
added  with  a  smile  that  seemed  half  sad. 

Knight  had  come  up,  and  was  standing  so  near  that 
Jack  could  only  say  under  his  breath, 

"This  is  not  'good-by.'" 

Afterward  he  was  afraid  she  had  not  heard  him. 

She  turned  abruptly  as  he  released  her  hand,  which  in 
speaking  he  had  firmly  detained  an  instant,  and  moved 
away  from  him  without  further  answer  or  look.  Knight 
was  still  close  beside  her  as  the  two  passed  from  sight. 

This  was  not  like  her  coming  into  Lowton.  That 
night  had  been  the  tide  in  his  affairs;  he  had  nofc  taken 
it  at  the  flood;  and  now,  when  he  ought  to  have  already 
become  very  much  to  her,  she  had  not  only  neglected 
to  ask  him  to  visit  her,  but  had  refused  his  broad  hint, 
almost  request,  for  permission  to  do  it. 

Walking  up  and  down  the  platform,  waiting  for  the 
return  train  to  Lowton,  he  felt  no  happier  because  he 
remembered  that  the  present  state  of  affairs  was  very 
much  his  own  fault,  notwithstanding  Mrs.  Mason.  He 
ought  to  have  comprehended  both  her  and  Helen  better. 
He  remembered  the  time  when  Helen  BeH  had  been  cor 
dial.  There  was  one  day  when,  as  her  eyes  turned  to 
him,  he  had  read  in  them  a  shy  interest  that  filled  him 
with  delight.  Afterward  he  had  put  the  recollection  from 
him,  as  his  fancy  merely,  or  else  an  interest  in  excellent 


1 86  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

accord  with  her  judgment.  Now,  that  the  new  faith  in 
her,  which  had  been  dawning  upon  him  for  weeks,  had 
burst  at  last  into  sunlit  brightness,  this  recollection  had 
come  back  with  a  tender  hope.  Helen  Bell  should  be 
cordial  to  him  again,  when  all  that  was  best  in  him 
had  been  called  into  service  to  prove  his  reverence  for 
her,  and  to  show  her  how  his  happiness  lay  in  her  hands. 
He  knew  she  was  too  noble  not  to  forgive;  and  since, 
as  he  now  believed,  he  had  awakened  the  beginnings  of 
interest,  this,  although  it  proved  that  she  had  so  much 
more  to  forgive,  gave  him  courage. 

To-day  nothing  could  be  done;  but — 

"  'To-morrow  brings  another  day,'"  he  hummed,  with 
a  look  of  determination,  as  he  steamed  back  to  Lowton. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Jack,  you  don't  take  one  scrap  of  interest, 
A  but  I  have  had  quite  an  interesting  day  of  it, 
though  I  am  so  tired;  and  I  have  something  to  tell  that 
perhaps  you  would  like  to  hear.  You  ought,  if  you 
wouldn't. " 

"What  is  it?" 

But  Mrs.   Barney  had  by  no  means  arrived  at  it  yet. 

"Oh,  those  great  stores,"  she  grumbled,  "they  are  so 
crammed  !  The  next  day  I  run  up  to  town,  I  shall  go 
the  night  before — no,  no,  I  mean  the  next  time  I  have 
a  day's  shopping  to  do,  I'll  go  there  the  evening  before, 
to  be  on  hand  early  in  the  morning  before  the  rush 
begins. " 

"  Well, "  returned  her  nephew  meditatively,  "this  does 
interest  me  as  connected  with  your  movements;  but  there 
is  nothing  very  exciting  in  the  threat,  especially  as  you 
have  made  it  several  times  before,  and  have  never  yet  car 
ried  it  out.  Is  that  what  you  had  to  tell?" 


1 88  A    L.^ZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Indeed!"  returned  the  lady.  "You  don't  care  to 
hear,  then  ?  Your  indifference  will  save  me  a  great  deal 
of  trouble,  certainly." 

The  toe  of  her  little  slipper  silently  caressed  the  bar  of 
the  fender,  close  to  which  her  footstool  had  been  placed, 
and  she  leaned  her  head  against  the  cushioned  back  of 
her  chair. 

"In  that  case,"  she  pursued,  "as  you  are  wandering 
about  the  room,  and  don't  care  to  listen,  I  think  I  will 
take  a  nap.  I  am  really  very  tired  this  evening.  After 
all,  it  is  I,  not  you,  that  are  so  much  interested  in  Helen 
Bell." 

Jack  sat  down  at  once. 

"Your  pardon,  Aunt  Delia.  I  am  as  restless  as  you 
are  tired.  But  I  was  waiting  to  hear  the  account  of  your 
day  in  town." 

"Yes,"  said  Mrs.  Barney,  raising  her  head  again  with 
alacrity,  for  with  her  it  was,  as  she  put  it,  half  the  fun  to 
be  able  to  talk  things  over,  "I  dare  say,  my  dear  Jack; 
but  you  annoy  me  by  interruptions,  and  by  seeming  not 
to  care." 

"I  certainly  do  care;  so  please  go  on." 

"Go  on  with  what?  Why,  I  haven't  begun  yet.  You 
don't  want  the  end  until  you've  had  the  beginning." 

Holden  thought  that  depended  upon  what  the  begin 
ning  might  be,  and  he  knew  it  was  so  when  his  aunt 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  189 

added  that  she  went  first  to  the  dry-goods  stores.  But  he 
was  discreetly  silent. 

' '  I'll  tell  you  what,  Jack, "  cried  the  lady  already  warm 
ing  with  her  subject,  and  giving  her  head  a  small  angle  of 
inclination  to  look  at  him,  as  he  sat  further  from  the  fire 
than  she,  "shopping  is  an  art,  and  it  takes  a  good  deal  of 
experience  to  learn  it." 

"That  is  why  you  experiment  in  it  so  much,  I 
suppose. " 

"I?  Why,  I  don't  do  anything  at  all  'in  that  line,' 
as  the  salesmen  say.  You  should  see  what  other  peo 
ple  call  shopping.  Mrs.  Windham,  for  instance;  she 
has  something  new  to  be  got  at  least  five  days  out  of 
the  seven,  I'm  sure,  and  such  extravagant  purchases! 
But  really,  Jack,  I  only  play  at  it." 

' '  I  have  always  thought  so,  but  you  seemed  seriously 
hurt  with  me  if  I  ventured  to  suggest  such  a  thing." 

"Oh,  well,  you  don't  understand;  and  then  it  seems 
quite  different,  too,  don't  you  think,  if  you  say  a  thing 
yourself? " 

"Very  different." 

"In  spite  of  my  limited  experience  and  my  always 
strict  economy — you  needn't  smile  in  that  provoking 
way,  I  am  a  perfect  model  of  economy." 

"I  thought  so  when  the  bills  for  refurnishing  this 
house,  at  the  time  of  the  party,  came  in." 


190  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Mrs.  Barney  looked  at  the  speaker  with  grave  surprise. 

"My  dear  boy,  that  was  not  for  myself;  it  was  for 
you.  Do  you  imagine  I  think  anything  in  the  world 
within  the  bounds  of  possibility  too  good  for  you?" 

Her  surprise  had  deepened  to  a  sense  of  injury. 

"I  did  not  mind,  you  understand,  and  it  was  all 
very  handsome,"  Jack  hastened  to  say. 

' '  Yes,  it  certainly  is  very  handsome  indeed, "  she  an 
swered  forgetting  her  grievance  in  her  satisfaction.  "But 
I  was  going  to  tell  you  what  I  have  discovered  about 
shopping.  Two  things  especially.  Always  dress  in  your 
best.  If  you  wear  elegant  things  with  a  careless  air, 
everybody  that  looks  at  you  will  see  you  have  quantities 
more  even  better  at  home,  while  if  you  put  on  your  old 
dress  to  get  through  the  crowd  with,  they  will  be  sure 
to  imagine  it's  because  you  haven't  any  better,  and  they 
will  push  you  about  and  neglect  you  accordingly,  from 
the  clerks  down,  or  up,  just  as  it  happens.  No,  it  don't 
answer  to  dress  dowdily  and  speak  to  them  as  if  they 
were  gentlemen.  Precious  little  trouble  they'll  take  to 
do  anything  for  you  then;  they'll  look  over  your  head 
and  speak  to  somebody  else,  or  begin  to  talk  to  each 
other.  But  put  on  an  elegant  silk,  and  sail  into  the 
stores  as  if  nothing  in  them  was  quite  worth  your  look 
ing  at;  no  matter  if  you're  dying  with  admiration  of 
the  splendid  stuffs  lying  all  about,  don't  give  them  a 


A    LAZY  MAJV'S    WORK.  191 

glance  more  than  out  of  the  corners  of  your  eyes.  Sweep 
on  up  to  the  right  counter,  then  drop  down  upon  the 
seat  in  front  of  it  with  the  air  of  being  quite  exhausted 
with  the  walk  from  your  carriage  up  the  length  of  the 
store.  You  see,  Jack,  by  this  time  everybody  will  be 
ready  to  think  you  are  somebody.  You  needn't  smile. 
No  less  a  person  than  Ralph  Waldo  Emerson  says  a 
lady  or  gentleman  ought  never  to  express  too  much 
admiration.  Don't  you  suppose  he  knew  what  was 
proper  ? " 

"And  you  are  only  giving  an  illustration  of  his  the 
ory  in  detail?" 

"That's  all,  illustrating  it  as  you  say,  just  as  Miss 
Bell  might  sketch  it  all  out.  Oh,  I  have  something 
to  say  about  her,  haven't  I  ? " 

' '  Yes.     Did  you  see  her  ? " 

"See  her?  As  well  find  a  needle  in  a  haystack.  But 
I've  not  come  to  her  yet.  You  just  wait,  and  I'll  tell 
you.  If  '  order  is  Heaven's  first  law ' — that's  Milton,  I 
believe — then  we  ought  to  be  particular  about  telling 
things  in  detail.  I  wish  you  would  not  keep  twisting 
your  face  about  so,  Jack;  it's  not  becoming,  if  that's 
what  you're  doing  it  for. 

"Well,  though,  to  resume.  Don't  look  at  the  clerk 
any  more  than  if  he  were  a  machine,  drop  your  eyelids 
and  ask  for  what  you  want,  and  when  they  show  it  to 


192  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

you,  ask  if  they  have  no  better  quality;  no  matter 
whether  you  like  this  or  not,  you  should  have  a  choice, 
and  let  it  be  seen  you  know  there  are  better  qualities." 

"Is  that  shoddy  style  your  way  of  doing  things, 
Aunt  Delia?" 

"Why,  I'm  afraid  I  don't  carry  it  out  well.  I  al 
ways  get  interested  in  the  people  I  am  talking  to.  But 
I  tell  you,  Jack,  it  takes  amazingly.  Everybody  thinks 
your  husband  has  been  making  an  extra  million  or  two 
the  last  year,  and  you've  come  to  spend  some  of  it  for 
him,  and  they  know  that  the  later  you've  got  your 
money,  the  more  afraid  you'll  be  of  people  thinking 
you  still  obliged  to  be  economical.  You'll  get  atten 
tion  enough  this  way,  and  it's  what  you  want  when 
you  go  shopping.  The  fact  is  that  in  the  Hub  of  Lit 
erature  and  Art  they  think  as  much  of  people's  clothes 
as  anywhere  else." 

"Very  likely.  And  was  shopping  all  you  did  in 
town  ? " 

' '  No,  indeed.  Ah  !  yes,  that  reminds  me.  You  are 
a  little  curious,  too,  Jack,  I  perceive.  No,  sir,  shopping 
did  not  take  all  my  time.  I  went  to  some  of  the  picture 
stores.  And  what  did  I  see  there  ?  Lovely  things  that 
if  I  had  had  my  hand  in  your  pocket-book,  I  should 
have  ordered  home." 

"What  paintings  did  you  especially  admire?" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  193 

Holden  got  up  and  walked  to  the  window  as  he  asked 
this  question,  then  came  again  to  the  fire,  and  giving  the 
backlog  a  vigorous  push  with  the  shovel,  stood  facing 
his  aunt. 

"I  liked  one  or  two  of  Hunt's  very  much,  and  there 
was  a  French  artist  very  striking.  No,  I  believe  it  was 
at  the  Art  Museum  I  saw  his  pictures.  But  I  liked 
Helen  Bell's  best  of  all." 

"Of course,"  laughed  Holden. 

"No,  Jack,  not  'of  course/  by  any  means.  I  have 
discrimination  enough  not  to  think  a  picture  good  be 
cause  I  happen  to  admire  the  artist." 

"You  are  mistaken  if  you  think  I  suppose  Miss  Bell's 
picture  to  be  anything  but  fine,"  he  answered.  I  wish 
I  had  seen  it  What  was  the  subject  ? " 

' '  You  remember  Whittier's  poem  of  '  Amy  Went- 
worth/  don't  you?  The  girl  belonging  to  that  proud  old 
family.  She  was  in  love  with  the  sailor.  But  she  was 
as  grand  as  any  of  them. 

" '  strong  of  will  and  proud  as  they, 
She  walks  the  gallery  floor 
As  if  she  trod  her  sailor's  deck 
By  stormy  Labrador ! ' 

Well,  she  was  the  subject  of  the  painting,  only  she 
wasn't  walking  the  gallery  floor,  she  was  on  the  beach. 
Oh  Jack,  you  ought  to  have  seen  those  waves  !  Why, 


194  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

I  seemed  to  be  watching  them  tower  up  and  curl  over, 
and  see  the  foam  all  breaking  out  green  white;  and 
there,  in  the  sky,  off  in  the  distance,  the  sea  gulls 
were  flying,  I  suppose  they  were  bearing  messages  to 
him,  as  the  poem  says.  His  ship  is  away,  away  off  on 
the  horizon,  the  sunshine  strikes  the  sail  and  you  can 
catch  a  glimpse  of  this.  And  the  wind  is  blowing, 
not  too  hard,  you  know — a  lady  beside  me,  when  I 
was  looking  at  it,  said  it  was  all  sunshine  and  free  air." 

"But  you  have  not  told  me  anything  about  Amy 
Wentworth." 

"Mr.  Impatience!  I'm  coming  to  that.  I've  always 
tried  to  teach  you  to  save  the  best  until  the  last,  I've 
been  enveloping  you  in  her  atmosphere." 

"Oh,  that's  very  fine,"  laughed  Jack. 

' '  Of  course  it  is.  Do  you  think  I  don't  know  how 
to  describe  a  picture  ?  As  to  Amy,  she's  walking  close  to 
the  water's  edge,  as  if  she  wanted  the  beautiful  waves 
to  touch  her.  The  wind  blows  her  cloak  back,  but  she 
is  holding  the  folds  firmly  with  one  hand,  so  gracefully. 
The  wind  touches  her  skirts,  too,  and  they  flutter  a  lit 
tle.  She  walks  like  the  goddess  Virgil  tells  about." 

"He  tells  about  a  good  many." 

' '  You  understand  me.  I  shall  not  condescend  to  ex 
plain.  Her  other  hand  is  full  of  sea-mosses;  she  holds 
them  out  from  her,  and  the  long  streamers  are  blowing 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  195 

back  against  her  cloak,  and  against  her  broad-brimmed 
hat  hanging  on  her  arm.  She  is  looking  out  to  sea, 
and  she  seems  so  full  of  the  sunshine  and  the  fresh 
breeze  herself.  You  ought  to  see  her  face !  It  is  so 
glad,  and  so  strong  you  get  absorbed  in  the  charm  of 
her  expression  and  forget  she  is  handsome  besides.  I 
tell  you  what  I  think,  Jack;  Miss  Bell  could  look  just 
that  kind  of  way  herself,  if  she  were  watching  for  a  lover 
she  thought  a  great  deal  of.  Why  didn't  you  go  to  see 
the  picture  the  day  you  were  in  town  ? " 

There  was  no  answer  for  a  moment;  then  Holden  said, 

"I  should,  if  I  had  known." 

"You  see,  you  shouldn't  have  gone  just  the  day  be 
fore  I  did,  and  never  told  me  of  it.  And  you  staid  such 
a  little  while,  too  !  It  wouldn't  pay  me  to  go  anywhere 
for  two  hours." 

"It  didn't  pay  me,  for  I  could  not  do  my  errand." 

"So  you  said;  but  you  tried,  and  there  is  always  a 
great  deal  of  satisfaction  in  that." 

" Is  there? " 

' '  Yes,  indeed.  But  I've  not  told  you  all  about  the  paint 
ing  yet.  It  is  quite  large.  As  I  was  sitting  there  and  talk 
ing  with  the  picture-dealer — a  very  gentlemanly  person — 
about  it,  and  telling  him  I  was  acquainted  with  Miss 
Bell,  who  should  walk  in  but  Mrs.  Winters.  You  re 
member  her?  She  knows  everything,  it  seems  to  me, 


196  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

about  art  and  artists.  She  admired  the  picture,  too,  and 
said  it  certainly  ought  to  have  been  at  the  last  exhibition. 
'  Why  in  the  world  didn't  she  offer  it  ? '  I  asked.  '  She 
did/  said  Mrs.  Winters.  'And  the  committee  refused  it?' 
I  cried.  '  Not  they;  but  I'll  tell  you  something  about  it 
that  I  learned  from  the  best  authority. ' " 

And  Mrs.  Barney  gave  a  lengthy  account,  heard  from 
Mrs.  Winters,  of  Helen's  withdrawal  of  her  painting 
which  made  room  for  that  of  a  friend. 

Jack  listened  in  silence,  but  his  aunt  could  not 
complain  of  any  want  of  attention. 

When  she  had  finished  he  made  no  comment. 

' '  Should  you  have  expected  that  of  Helen,  now, 
good  as  she  seemed  ? "  she  asked  him. 

"Yes, "he  answered,  and  said  nothing  more,  greatly 
to  Aunt  Delia's  disappointment,  who,  as  she  told  him, 
dearly  liked  a  touch  of  enthusiasm. 

A  few  mornings  later  Jack  called  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's. 
It  was  a  week  since  the  evening  he  had  spent  there,  and 
if  the  intervals  between  his  visits  lengthened,  he  did 
not  mean  them  to  do  so  too  markedly.  And,  also,  he 
did  not  remember  exactly  where  Helen  lived,  though 
he  had  asked  her  something  about  her  home,  in  one  of 
the  drives  they  took  so  long  ago. 

Mrs.  Edgerly  greeted  him  cordially,  and  said  she  was 
always  glad  to  see  him. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  197 

Mrs.  Mason  was  at  home,  and  the  young  ladies. 
Jenny,  as  it  proved,  unconsciously  aided  him  in  his 
errand  by  asking  if  he  had  not  gone  up  to  town  with 
Helen  the  other  morning. 

' '  In  the  same  train, "  he  answered. 

"Not  in  the  same  seat,  Mr.  Holden,  when  she  was 
traveling  alone  ? " 

' '  But  she  was  not  Mr.  Knight  entertained  her  all 
the  way,  and,  as  I  suppose,  saw  her  safely  home,  for 
they  went  out  of  the  station  together." 

' '  Indeed  !  "  said  Bertha.  "If  he  did,  his  politeness 
took  him  quite  a  distance." 

Kitty  smiled,  but  Jenny,  to  whom  he  had  turned  in 
answering  her  question,  said  nothing,  only  as  he  looked 
at  her  she  seemed  paler  than  usual. 

Holden  improved  the  opportunity  to  learn  where  Mr. 
Knight's  politeness  would  take  him,  in  case  he  accom 
panied  Helen. 

The  conversation  drifted  off  to  other  people  and  other 
subjects,  and  Knight  remained  an  undercurrent  in  the 
thoughts  of  three  persons,  when  Andrew,  who  had  just 
come  in,  brought  him  suddenly  to  the  surface  again,  by 
remarking  to  his  wife,  as  he  moved  back  from  shaking 
hands  with  Holden, 

"I  met  Knight  down  by  the  station,  Kitty;  he  said 
he  had  just  been  to  call  upon  you." 


198  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Yes, "said  Mrs.  Mason,  "I  told  him  he  would  be 
v^ery  likely  to  see  you  down  town." 

"Has  he  been  here  this  morning?"  cried  Bertha. 
"Why  didn't  you  tell  us?" 

"  He  was  in  haste  and  staid  only  about  ten  minutes. 
You  and  Jenny  were  occupied  with  your  music,  and  he 
came  into  the  east  room." 

"  Didn't  he  ask  for — us,  Aunt  Kitty?"  said  her  niece, 
in  a  tone  so  low  and  quiet  there  was  a  suspicion  of 
breathlessness  in  it  which  made  Andrew  glance  at  her. 

Kitty  laughed. 

"No,  young  ladies,"  she  said,  "I  am  obliged  to 
wound  your  vanity  by  declaring  that  he  never  mentioned 
either  of  your  particularly.  He  was  going  away  'for 
good,'  as  people  say,  and  he  asked  me  to  make  his  fare 
wells  to  all  the  family,  and  express  his  thanks  for  the 
kindness  he  had  received. " 

"Probably,"  drawled  Andrew,  "he  had  too  short  a 
time  to  do  justice  to  his  emotions  in  presence  of  us  all." 

"Probably,"  assented  Kitty  with  a  mysterious  half 
smile  still  hovering  about  her  mouth. 

"That's  not  my  idea  of  making  one's  self  agreeab'e, 
anyhow, "  cried  Bertha,  indignantly.  ' '  I  would  have 
taken  the  trouble  to  speak  to  people  that  had  shown 
me  as  much  attention  as  we  have  him,  even  if  I  staid 
over  a  train  to  do  it." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  199 

"But,  you  see,  he  has  done  with  us,"  said  Jenny; 
"he  is  not  coming  back,  and  it  makes  no  difference 
any  longer  what  we  think  about  him." 

"That  is  very  likely  to  be  so,"  said  Kitty. 

"The  young  girl  looked  up  at  her  aunt  in  amaze 
ment.  If  she  had  done  as  wiser  people  than  herself 
occasionally  do,  made  an  accusation  for  the  sake  of 
hearing  it  confuted,  she  had  no  reward  for  her  pains. 

Andrew  glanced  from  her  troubled  face  to  his  wife's, 
which  wore  a  look  of  open  satisfaction,  and  frowned.  It 
was  certain  he  would  not  forget  either  expression. 

"I  suppose,"  cried  Bertha,  "you  mean  to  imply  that 
now  Helen  has  gone  he  doesn't  care  to  speak  to  any 
of  us  ? " 

"I  have  never  said  anything  of  the  kind,"  answered 
Kitty  laughing;  ' '  if  you  choose  to  infer  it,  you  may  do 
as  you  please.  But,"  she  added,  "I  will  tell  you  this: 
you  will  all  remember  these  things  that  you  have  been 
saying  now,  and  they  will  sound  very  odd  to  you  some 
day." 

"Why?" 

"O,  Andrew,  there  you  are  again!  Girls,"  she  cried 
still  laughing,  "do  all  your  talking  now,  for  when  you 
have  husbands  that  are  forever  following  you  up  with  a 
'  why  ? '  there'll  be  no  chance  for  it.  You  are  as  full  of 
investigations  as  to  the  reasons  of  this  and  that,  Andrew, 


200  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

as  if  I  were  some  natural  phenomenon.  But,  poor  me  ! 
I'm  powerless  to  answer.  Shakespeare  was  never  greater 
than  when  he  made  somebody  say,  '  A  woman's  reason, 
I  think  it  so,  because — I  think  it  so. ' " 

"There!"  exclaimed  Bertha,  "how  careless  it  was 
in  me ! " 

"I've  not  a  doubt  of  that.  What  was  it?"  asked 
Kitty  still  greatly  amused  by  some  secret  cause. 

' '  I  borrowed  some  white  floss  of  Helen  to  put  in 
a  few  stitches  with,  and  here  it  is  still  in  my  basket. 
But  there  are  only  two  or  three  needlefuls,  so  it's  no 
matter,"  and  she  proceeded  to  verify  her  statement  by 
unwinding  the  silk.  "There  is  something  written  on 
this  scrap,"  she  said,  taking  up  the  folded  paper  that  had 
served  fora  spool.  "Poetry,  as  I  live.  Listen,  friends, 
to  a  voice  from  the  departed." 

"For  shame,   Bertha!" 

"Well,  grandmamma,  isn't  she  departed?  This  is 
the  voice,  anyway." 

'"Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again.'  " 

"That's  true  enough,"  said  Kitty.  "I  wonder  where 
she  found  it." 

"Made  it,  perhaps,"  suggested  Mrs.   Edgerly. 

"Oh,   no,   she  is  not  given  to  sentiment,   except — I 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  2O1 

mean,  she  told  me  she  never  wrote  poetry.  That  is  ex 
cellent  Read  it  again,  Bertha." 

" « Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again,'  " 

repeated  the  girl  obediently.  ' '  She  writes  a  very  stylish 
hand,"  she  added  by  way  of  comment. 

' '  Is  that  her  own  writing  ?  "  asked  Jack. 

"Certainly.     I've  seen  it  dozens  of  times." 

' '  No  doubt  of  that.     May  I  look  at  it,  if  you  please  ?  " 

Bertha  glanced  at  him  in  surprise,  but  he  offered  no 
explanation  as  he  reached  out  his  hand  for  the  paper. 

He  held  it  a  moment,  studying  it  silently,  and  then 
gave  it  back  with  a  simple  ' '  Thank  you. " 

He  took  his  leave  soon  after. 

Nearly  an  hour  from  this  time  Kitty  went  upstairs. 
She  said  she  had  left  her  scissors  in  her  room;  and  this 
was  true.  But  she  would  have  borrowed  Bertha's  for  the 
nonce  had  she  not  been  secretly  wondering  what  had 
become  of  Jenny,  and  had  not  a  little  tardy  fear  mingled 
with  her  surprise. 

In  the  upper  hall  she  called,  "Jenny."  But  no  one 
answered.  She  knocked  at  the  door  of  her  niece's  room, 
but  not  receiving  any  reply  even  here,  went  in. 

Jenny  was  crouched  upon  the  floor,  her  face  and  one 
arm  upon  the  seat  of  a  large  easy-chair  she  was  leaning 


202  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

against.  She  was  sobbing  with  all  her  might,  as  her 
aunt  had  thought  on  opening  the  door. 

"My  child,  what  is  breaking  your  dear  little  heart 
like  this?" 

She  seated  herself  on  the  floor  beside  her  niece,  and 
drew  down  the  girl's  head  caressingly  upon  her  shoulder. 
Jenny  allowed  it  to  remain  there,  but  she  did  not 
cease  her  sobbing  for  some  time,  nor  offer  a  word  of 
explanation. 

Meanwhile,  Kitty  sat  silent,  recalling  with  annoyance 
and  some  degree  of  compunction,  the  warnings  she  had 
slighted.  After  all,  Bertha  understood  better  than  she 
had  done,  for  her  own  thoughts  had  been  so  entirely 
upon  another  object. 

She  perceived  it  would  never  do  for  a  society  woman 
to  be  a  person  of  one  idea;  her  wits  must  be  ubiquitous, 
else  her  mistakes  would  be  too  many  to  be  tolerated. 
Yet  how  could  she  have  been  prepared  for  this,  when 
she  knew  so  well  what  would  make  it  quite  out  of  the 
question  ? 

"Jenny,"  she  said  at  last,  stroking  the  soft  hair  lightly, 
' '  who  has  been  distressing  you  ?  " 

"You,"  answered  the  girl  looking  up  at  her  half-de- 
fiantly.  Yet  in  another  moment  she  clung  to  her  again, 
and  added,  "No,  it  was  only  a  little  your  doing,  all  the 
rest  was — mine,  perhaps.  Do  you  think  I  have  been 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'.  203 

silly  and  vain,  Aunt  Kitty  ?  Have  I  imagined — things, 
I  wonder,  or  have  they  really  been  said  to  me  ?  Tell  me, 
do  I  compare  so  very  badly  with  Helen?  Tell  me  the 
truth. " 

Again  she  drew  back,  and  faced  her  aunt  with  a  trem 
bling  determination  to  learn  the  worst  at  once. 

"You  compare  well  with  anybody,  my  dear,  and  you 
know  I  very  much  prefer  your  style  to  Helen  Bell's." 

'  Others  don't,  though,"  sighed  the  girl;  "and  at  any 
rate,  he  does  not" 

The  persons  whom  Kitty  had  made  to  suffer  were 
partially  avenged  at  that  moment.  As  she  saw  the  color 
in  Jenny's  averted  face,  her  pride  received  a  severe  wound. 

' '  Insolent  fellow  !  "  she  said  to  herself,  and  bent  over 
her  niece  with  a  keen  dislike  of  the  task  before  her;  for 
although  she  had  so  little  scruple  in  giving  pain  to  some 
people,  she  had  no  fancy  for  bringing  sadness  into  Jen 
ny's  heart. 

She  recollected  that  this  had  come  about  because 
Helen  was  the  kind  of  person  that  no  one  but  she  her 
self  knew  her  to  be. 

"You  mean  Mr.   Knight,  Jenny?" 

"Yes." 

"He  has  no  right  to  pay  attention  to  you,  dear." 

"Why  not?     Is  he  married?" 

"I  don't  know  that  he  is,   but — " 


204  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

The  color  came  back  a  little  into  the  girl's  face,  grown 
white  with  her  last  question. 

"I  didn't  know  what  you  meant,"  she  said.  "If  he 
is,  Helen  ought  to  be  told." 

"  He  has  no  interest  in  Helen  Bell,  in  that  way,"  cried 
Kitty  quickly. 

"I  knew  it  must  be  impossible,"  said  Jenny  softly, 
her  face  beaming. 

"  Nor  in  you,  nor  Bertha  either,  dear;  you  may  assure 
yourself  of  that.  Whatever  nonsense  he  has  spoken,  was 
only  in  that  despicable  way  of  flirtation,  and  I  am  very 
much  annoyed  that  he  has  been  insolent  enough  to  say 
anything." 

"  'Insolent! '" 

' '  Yes,  Jenny,  insolent;  because — I  must  tell  you  some 
thing  which  you  are  to  keep  secret  for  a  time.  Will  you 
do  it?" 

"Yes.     What  is  it?" 

She  was  very  pale  again,  and  her  fingers  locked  and 
unlocked  themselves  nervously  as  she  waited. 

"Mr.  Knight  is  not  in  a  position  to  aspire  to  one  of 
you,  even  if  he  were  the  kind  of  man  I  should  want  to 
see — " 

Kitty  hesitated. 

"Me  marry,"  finished  Jenny  boldly.  "That's  what 
we  both  mean,  so  we  may  as  well  say  it." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  205 

"You  marry!"  echoed  Kitty  horrified.  "Indeed, 
I  couldn't  even  imagine  such  a  thing,  far  less  mean  it. 
Why,  Jenny,  I  would  rather  see  you — I  was  going  to  say 
in  your  grave." 

"But  that  is  putting  it  strongly." 

"Jenny,   take  care.     Mr.   Knight  is  only  a — " 

"A  what?"  the  other  asked  in  a  voice  full  of  eagerness. 

' '  I  cannot  say  for  a  few  days;  I  am  bound  not  to 
do  it.  But  you  certainly  must  put  all  thoughts  of  him 
out  of  your  head  instantly.  Don't  you  see,  if  he  had 
really  cared  about  you,  he  would  have  made  an  op 
portunity  to  say  good-by  ?  " 

Jenny's  face  fell. 

' '  Let  pride  keep  you  from  dwelling  for  a  momen1- 
upon  any  silly  flirtation  which,  as  you  see  for  your 
self,  Mr.  Knight  very  properly  wishes  to  forget,"  her 
aunt  went  on;  "he  was  only  a  transient  acquaintance, 
now  he  has  passed  out  of  your  knowledge  forever. 
That  sort  of  thing  very  often  happens  in  society." 

Jenny  made  no  answer,  unless  the  look  that  came 
over  her  face  at  the  assertion  that  the  young  man  had 
passed  out  of  her  knowledge  forever  were  an  answer. 
Mrs.  Mason  did  not  see  this,  for  the  girl  had  risen 
and  moved  away. 

"Kitty!"  called  Mason's  voice  in  the  hall;  and 
Kitty  left  her  niece,  to  meet,  she  knew,  an  ordeal 


206  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

much  more  severe  than   this  interview  had  been      She 
came  forward,   however,  with  a  smiling  face. 

But  though  her  husband's  manner  was  very  grave, 
and  he  was  evidently  displeased,  he  only  inquired  about 
something  he  could  not  find  in  his  room,  and  when 
she  had  brought  to  him  what  he  wanted,  left  her  with 
a  cold  "Thank  you,"  unlike  his  usual  genial  manner. 

Kitty  felt  that  it  was  very  hard.  But  time  would 
help  her — time  and  patience.  She  already  possessed 
the  latter;  as  to  time,  that  came  of  itself.  She  perceived 
that,  at  least,  she  had  been  of  great  use  to  Jenny,  and 
that  the  girl's  own  pride  would  now  do  all  the  rest. 

But  if,  after  Jenny  had  quietly  closed  the  door  behind 
this  adviser  when  Andrew  called  her  away,  Kitty  had 
seen  the  girl's  face,  she  would  not  have  been  so  con 
fident  as  to  the  amount  of  aid  she  had  given. 

"Aunt  Kitty  is  sure  he  doesn't  care  for  Helen," 
thought  Jenny,  "and  this  is  all  that  really  troubles  me. 
As  to  his  going  away  without  a  word  to  me,  I'll  trust 
him,  as  he  said  so  particularly  I  must  do  if  anything 
seemed  very  strange.  It  may  be  Aunt  Kitty  doesn't 
know  the  whole  of  the  matter,  nor  any  more  impor 
tant  a  part  of  it  than  I  do.  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  he 
came  back." 

So  Kitty  rejoiced  in  the  excellent  results  of  Jenny's 
pride,  and  Jenny,  for  her  part,  rejoiced  that  not  pride, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  207 

but  faith,  kept  the  bloom  on  her  cheeks,  and  the  happy 
tones  in  her  voice. 

Before  his  morning  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's  Jack  Holden 
had  resolved  upon  his  course.  But  that  same  night 
he  stood  looking  out  upon  the  stars  hopeless.  He  had 
been  meaning  to  seek  Helen,  to  atone  for  his  wrong, 
and,  did  he  woo  her  never  so  humbly,  never  so  ear 
nestly,  never  so  persistently,  to  win  her  at  last 

But  what  was  there  left  for  him  to  do  ?  This  interest 
in  himself  which  he  was  bold  enough  to  believe  had 
at  first  sprung  up  in  her  thoughts,  he  had  killed,  and 
to-night  as  he  stood  beside  the  window,  he  saw  his  own 
purpose  slain  by  the  same  weapon.  What  could  de 
votion  or  patience  do  for  him  now  ? 

"Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again." 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"  IV  T  AM  MA,  the  homeless  author  of  'Home,  Sweet 
-*-*-«-  Home'  must  have  realized  perfectly  the  truth 
of  that  saying  that  there  is  always  rest  at  the  centre. 
I  feel  as  if  for  the  past  few  days  I  had  come  into  that 
centre. " 

Helen  Bell  leaned  back  on  the  lounge  in  her  mother's 
room  as  she  said  this,  and  clasped  her  arms  behind  her 
head  in  a  luxury  of  repose.  She  had  been  painting  for 
hours,  and  came  out  of  her  studio  in  that  state  of  health 
ful  satisfaction  which  follows  earnest  work  with  good 
result;  and  sweetens  the  hours  of  leisure  with  the 
sense  of  their  being  well  earned. 

She  watched  her  mother's  gentle  face,  and  met  the 
love  in  her  beautiful  eyes.  What  a  blessed  change 
from  Kitty's  unquiet  ways  was  all  this  !  She  ought  to 
have  had  a  thoroughly  pleasant  winter,  since  Mrs. 
Edgerly  had  been  so  very  kind  to  her;  but,  in  truth, 
she  felt  great  relief  in  freedom  from  daily  annoyances, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  209 

each  one  too  petty  to  be  remembered,  yet  vexatious 
enough  while  she  had  to  endure  it  In  the  gladness  of 
her  home-coming  she  was  sure  she  had  learned  only  one 
thing  thoroughly  at  Lowton — the  advantage  of  keeping 
away  from  it  in  future.  There,  too,  she  had  received 
a  wound  to  her  pride,  or  her  vanity,  as  she  called  it, 
in  her  determination  to  be  just. 

The  whole  week  since  her  return  she  had  worked  more 
steadily  than  ever. 

"It  is  my  life,  mamma,"  she  answered  this  afternoon 
when  her  mother  told  her  she  looked  very  tired.  "Do 
you  remember,"  she  added,  "who  it  is  that  says,  'Blessed 
is  the  man  who  has  found  his  work;  let  him  seek  no 
other  blessedness'?" 

Mrs.  Bell  looked  at  her  a  moment  with  tender  gravity, 
but  made  no  reply. 

"Carrie  Claude  handed  in  a  letter  she  took  from  the 
office  for  you,  Helen,"  she  said  after  a  pause. 

"Did  she?"  cried  Helen.  "Where  is  it?  On  the 
mantel-piece  ?  "  and  she  was  opening  it  before  her  mother 
could  speak.  ' '  When  did  it  come  ? "  she  added  un 
folding  it 

' '  Half  an  hour  ago.  But  I  knew  you  would  be 
here  in  time  to  answer  by  to-night's  mail,  if  necessary; 
so  I  obeyed  orders,  and  let  you  alone;  since  that  is  all 
you  ever  want." 


210  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"That  was  right,  mamma.  I  see  it  is  something 
about  that  picture;  it  has  sold,  no  doubt,  for  an  immense 
sum,"  and  she  laughed  incredulously,  not  without  a 
touch  of  bitterness. 

But  after  a  smothered  exclamation  as  she  began  to 
read,  she  uttered  no  other  sound,  only  stood  looking  at 
the  words  before  her  as  if  she  could  not  fully  comprehend 
them,  pale,  her  eyes  dark. 

Slowly  a  light  came  over  her  face,  and  a  smile.  Then, 
with  trembling  lips  she  bent  down  and  kissed  her  mother. 

"Thank  God,  mamma,  it  is  over  now,  all  this  sick 
ness  of  hope  deferred  !  What  I  spoke  so  scornfully  is 
true;  the  picture  has  sold,  and  brought  a  great  deal 
more  than  I  dared  to  expect;  and,  too,  the  buyer  has 
given  me  an  order  for  a  companion  picture,  and  I  am 
to  choose  the  subject  myself.  How  could  she  have  un 
derstood  I  should  make  it  so  much  better  with  this 
freedom  ? " 

' ' '  She '  ?     Then  it  was  a  lady  ?  " 

"Yes;  and  do  you  know  I  am  glad  of  that?  It  will 
always  be  pleasant  to  me  to  remember  that  my  first 
upward  step  to  fame  was  taken  by  the  aid  of  a  woman's 
hand.  We  ought  to  help  one  another." 

Mrs.  Bell  laughed. 

"That  is  a  touch  of  sentiment,  Helen,  which  may 
be  pardoned  you  in  consideration  of  the  excitement  of 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  211 

the  moment.  But,  depend  upon  it,  had  it  been  a  man 
who  bought  the  picture,  you  would  have  found  an 
equally  good  reason  for  satisfaction  in  it,  and  you  would 
have  had  cause." 

' '  Mamma,  you  are  the  only  thoroughly  sensible  person 
I  know  who  is  never  hard-hearted.  No,  there  is  one 
other. " 

"Who  is  it?  That  Mr.  Holden  who,  you  used  to 
write  me,  was  so  much  at  Mrs.  Edgerly's  early  in  the 
winter  ? " 

' '  No,  indeed  !  " 

A  look  of  annoyance  and  scorn  came  into  Helen's  face. 

"It  was  Mr.  Mason,"  she  added.  "Why  do  you 
speak  of  the  other  just  now,  when  I  am  so  happy  ? " 

"You  have  not  mentioned  him  for  so  long,  that  for 
the  last  two  or  three  months  I  did  not  even  know  he 
was  in  Lowton.  Has  he  power  to  make  you  unhappy  ? " 

"Certainly  not  But  he  annoys  me,  as  he  would  you, 
if  you  knew  him — "  she  stopped;  "if  you  knew  all  that  I 
do  about  him,"  she  corrected — "and  I  am  Sybarite 
enough  just  now  to  be  unwilling  my  pleasure  should  re 
ceive  even  a  jar." 

Mrs.  Bell  noticed  the  face  momentarily  turned  away, 
and  the  constrained  tones.  She  saw  that  she  was  not 
wholly  in  her  daughter's  confidence.  Helen  was  always 
much  more  ready  to  report  pleasant  things  of  people  than 


212  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

disagreeable  ones.  Or,  if  there  were  still  deeper  cause 
for  trouble,  the  mother  had  even  less  reason  to  expect 
any  sign  from  this  woman  who  from  her  childhood  had 
been  slow  to  speak  of  what  she  felt  most  deeply.  The 
elder  woman's  eyes  grew  full  of  trust  and  wistful  love  as 
she  watched  the  other  face  struggling  back  to  its  smile, 
and  again  turning  toward  her. 

' '  Have  you  any  subject  ready  for  a  companion  pict 
ure  ? "  she  asked. 

"I  was  thinking  to-day  of  something  that  I  could 
easily  make  of  the  same  size,  but  I  have  not  decided  yet 
It  must  be  a  better  painting  than  this  one." 

' '  That  is  why  you  stand  there  looking  as  care- weigh  ted 
as  Atlas !  " 

"You  are  a  saucy  mamma,"  Helen  answered  smiling. 

Her  troubled  expression  did  not  return  that  evening, 
although  several  times  she  grew  abstracted  in  considering 
what  the  other  picture  was  to  be. 

The  next  day  Mr.  Knight  called.  She  was  at  work, 
and  excused  herself.  He  went  away,  promising  to  give 
himself  the  pleasure  of  seeing  her  before  long;  and  he 
kept  his  word,  for  he  came  the  following  afternoon,  just 
as  she  was  preparing  to  go  out.  He  staid  until  it  was 
too  late  for  her  walk,  but  made  himself  so  entertaining 
that  Mrs.  Bell's  invitation  to  him  to  come  again  was  very 
cordial 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  213 

"I  shall  certainly  do  so,"  he  answered  with  a  bow, 
and  a  smiling  glance  at  Helen  which  suggested  to  the 
mother  a  secret  understanding  between  the  two. 

But  the  girl  gave  no  response,  she  was  only  coldly 
polite. 

"Is  that  the  way  you  freeze  your  admirers?"  asked 
Mrs.  Bell  when  the  door  had  closed  upon  him. 

"If  they  are  people  like  him,  always;  but  he  is  not  an 
admirer.  I  don't  think  he  even  likes  me  very  well.  I 
don't  know  why  he  should  follow  up  the  acquaintance. 
There  is  an  undertone  of  assurance  in  his  manner  at 
times  that  makes  me  angry  with  him,  for  it  is  a  covert 
insolence. " 

' '  I  saw  nothing  of  it. " 

"Of  course  not  It's  more  like  lifting  a  mask  for  an 
instant  than  anything.  I  don't  understand  Mr.  Knight; 
and,  mamma,  I  don't  like  him.  I  hope  he  will  not  come 
here  often." 

"Unjustifiable  prejudice,  I  think,  Helen.  In  anything 
serious  one  can't  be  too  careful — but  a  mere  chance 
acquaintance  like  this.  You  are  over-critical.  You  shall 
not  be  compelled  to  endure  his  company,  though,  because 
I  find  him  entertaining." 

"I  should  like  him  well  enough  if  he  amused  you, 
but  I  have  no  faith  in  him.  He  is  not  genuine." 

Mr.   Knight,  however,   declined  to  be  disposed  of  so 


214  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

easily.  Not  only  did  he  repeat  his  visit,  and  after  that 
come  again,  but  he  seemed  ubiquitous.  If  Helen  walked 
down  to  the  post-office,  she  was  sure  to  meet  him;  if  she 
turned  the  corner  at  the  foot  of  her  street  where,  as  in  a 
fairy-tale  three  roads  met,  he  seemed  invariably  to  be 
turning  some  opposite  corner;  if  she  even  looked  out  of 
her  studio  window,  she  so  often  caught  sight  of  his 
sauntering  or  his  hurrying  figure,  though  he  never 
glanced  up  toward  her,  that  she  almost  resolved  to  look 
only  skyward  in  future.  She  wondered  what  he  was  do 
ing  here,  and  what  he  had  been  doing  in  Lowton.  Until 
now  she  had  never  troubled  herself  to  wonder  about  it, 
but  she  was  so  tired  of  seeing  him. 

Then  he  disappeared  as  suddenly  as  he  had  come;  and 
she  breathed  more  freely  as  she  went  about  the  place, 
hoping  he  would  not  return. 

Helen's  days  of  indecision  were  over.  She  had  found 
the  subject  for  her  companion  picture,  and  had  been  hard 
at  work  all  the  morning  outlining  it  But  the  beauty  of 
her  conception  seemed  perpetually  to  mock  the  efforts  of 
her  skillful  pencil. 

After  a  while  she  grew  very  weary,  and  laying  down  her 
brush,  rose  and  moved  about  the  room.  Then  she  stood 
before  her  work,  scanning  it  critically  a  long  time;  but  her 
eyes  kindled,  and  her  breath  came  more  quickly  as  she 
studied  the  grouping  and  pose  of  the  figures.  She  saw  a 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'.  215 

fault  in  arrangement  which  she  came  forward  to  correct, 
yet  the  picture  promised  well.  She  made  the  alteration, 
and  laying  down  her  brush  again,  leaned  her  hand  upon 
the  easel,  and  stood  thinking. 

She  herself  had  known  from  childhood  that  this  was  her 
life-work,  but  now  others  were  beginning  to  recognize  it, 
which  meant  some  little  fame  for  her — a  thing  she  did  not 
pretend  to  scoff  at — and  probably  before  very  long  a  mod 
est  competence,  at  least.  So  far  as  vantage-ground  for 
her  work  was  concerned,  she  would  have  the  world  before 
her  where  to  choose.  In  fancy  she  had  already  collected 
about  her  all  the  comforts  of  life;  and  by  degrees  many 
luxuries  would  come,  since,  nowadays,  some  of  them  are 
so  cheap.  She  was  to  be  a  woman  of  independent  for 
tune,  a  lady  of  leisure  when  upon  occasions  she  should 
choose  it  Yet,  she  sighed. 

Again  she  moved  back  and  stood  studying  her  work. 
She  had  been  daring  in  her  choice  of  a  subject,  and  the 
knowledge  of  this  stimulated  her.  As  she  thought  of  it 
now,  her  eyes  wandered  from  her  canvas,  and  rested  upon 
the  wall,  where  her  imagination  painted  in  life-size  and 
glowing  with  color,  the  lights  and  deep  shadows  of  life  it 
self,  the  scene  her  hand  was  to  imitate. 

It  was  "Cordelia's  Farewell  to  her  Sisters."  Goneril 
and  Regan  stand  flushed  with  elation.  The  very  sweep 
of  their  ermined  robes  is  an  expression  of  haughtiness. 


2l6  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Their  lofty  eyelids  look  down  upon  the  disinherited  sister. 
They  silence  her  plea  for  tenderness  toward  their  father  by 
a  reminder  that  she  is  but  a  beggar  received  "at  fortune's 
alms."  France  stands  at  Cordelia's  side  the  most  chival 
rous  and  most  perfect  lover  in  all  Shakespeare.  Petty 
souls  abhor  those  buffeted  by  fortune.  But  never  was  a 
woman  more  nobly  wooed  than  Cordelia.  To  France 
she  was  "most  choice  forsaken."  "'Tis  strange,"  he 
said,  "that  from  their  cold'st  neglect  my  love  should  kin 
dle  to  enflam'd  respect "  Her  matchless  betrothal  is  the 
one  relief  to  the  blackness  of  her  fate. 

As  she  turns  to  bid  farewell  to  her  sisters,  one  hand 
rests  upon  that  of  her  betrothed.  He  has  just  said  to 
her,  "Thou  losest  here,  a  better  where  to  find,"  and  she 
knows  the  speaker  well.  She  had  been  silent  when 
a  kingdom  was  at  stake,  and  silent  before  her  father's 
calumnies  until  France  declared  his  faith  in  her;  then 
love  conquered  her  pride,  and  she  told  that  her  only 
offence  was  "the  want  of  a  still-soliciting  eye,"  and  a 
tongue  she  was  the  richer  not  to  have.  The  light  of  tri 
umphant  love  is  upon  her  face.  Yet,  she  remembers  her 
father  left  at  the  mercy  of  Goneril  and  Regan,  and  fear  for 
him  tones  her  joy.  Her  other  hand  is  lifted  toward  the 
open  door,  through  which  he  has  just  passed  out,  and  her 
eyes  turned  upon  these  sisters  with  the  eloquent  pleading 
forbidden  to  her  lips. 


A    LAZY  MAN^S    WORK.  217 

Helen's  delight  in  her  art  rose  to  a  white  heat  as  she 
stood  before  these  glowing  figures  of  imagination,  more 
real  to  her  than  pencil  could  ever  make  them.  She 
seized  her  brush  again,  and  fell  to  work  with  renewed 
energy. 

As  she  went  on,  seeing,  instead  of  the  ideal,  more  and 
more  the  canvas  under  her  hand,  and  the  thousand  details 
necessary  to  produce  the  desired  results,  her  thoughts 
turned  from  the  enthusiasm  of  her  vivid  fancy  to  a  no 
less  eager  imagining  of  the  effect  her  work  would  have 
upon  others.  She  seemed  to  hear  it  acknowledged,  ad 
mired,  treasured,  and  she  delighted  in  her  power  to 
create  beauty.  She  saw  that  she  would  still  do  this  in 
poverty  or  in  wealth,  in  joy  or  in  sorrow;  that  the  artist 
must  live  and  grow,  whatever  might  fall  to  the  lot  of  the 
woman.  The  inevitableness  of  this  made  her  fearful  while 
it  thrilled  her.  She  accepted  it  as  her  portion  in  life;  but 
was  it  all  ? 

Her  motions  became  gradually  slower,  until  at  last  she 
sat  idle  while  this  question  held  her  thoughts,  and  she 
searched  the  lessons  of  her  past  life  and  the  possibilities 
of  her  future,  so  far  as  she  could  read  them,  for  an  an 
swer.  Fame  loomed  before  her  like  a  planet  still  on  the 
horizon;  but  while  she  valued  what  it  would  bring  her, 
she  had  little  faith  in  its  shedding  any  light  of  joy.  Once 
a  foretaste  of  the  kind  of  nature  its  brilliancy  would  attract 


2l8  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

had  come  to  her,  and  she  had  learned  when  the  promise 
of  her  talent  failed  of  swift  performance  how  quickly  her 
magnetic  influence  over  such  a  nature  ceased. 

It  seemed  long  ago  since  it  had  been  learned.  Yet  this 
morning  as  she  touched  reverently  the  figure  of  noble 
France,  by  whom  Cordelia  despised  was  loved  most,  the 
lesson  came  back  to  her  freshly  again,  and  she  felt  deeply 
that  realities  could  not  be  won  by  a  name.  She  remem 
bered  that  fame  would  not  prevent  false  and  cruel  words 
being  said  against  her,  as  they  had  been,  and  with  thfs 
recollection  the  present  and  the  older  past  faded  out  in 
more  vivid  memories.  She  sat  a  long  time  with  her  face 
in  her  hands. 

"What  aimless  malice!"  she  said  at  last  half  aloud; 
and  after  a  pause,  "It  will  never  be  the  same."  Then, 
there  was  another  pause.  ' '  It  was  love  of  truth, "  she 
added,  so  firmly  that  the  tones  roused  her,  and  she  went 
on  again  with  her  painting. 

She  would  always  have  her  work,  and  beyond  a  doubt 
she  loved  it  But  she  felt  no  more  enthusiasm  that  day. 

In  the  afternoon  she  went  out  for  a  long  walk.  She 
needed  the  fresh  air,  and  wanted  to  think  out  and 
straighten  a  few  things  that  the  morning's  meditation  had 
shown  her  to  be  a  good  deal  awry. 

But  as  she  opened  the  door,  there  on  the  sidewalk,  not 
two  rods  off,  was  Mr.  Knight  again. 


.4    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  219 

"  Ah  !  Miss  Bell,"  he  said  as  he  met  her  at  the  gate, 
"I  was  just  coming  to  your  house." 

He  certainly  was  a  most  cheerfully  unconscious  bad 
penny. 

He  refused  the  invitation  to  call  upon  her  mother,  and, 
instead,  joined  Helen  in  her  walk. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

ANDREW  MASON  called  at  Holden's  about  two 
*  *•  weeks  after  Jack's  unsatisfactory  trip  to  Boston,  and 
settling  himself  in  an  easy-chair  seemed  inclined  to  make 
an  evening  of  it  He  talked  little,  and  often  by  abruptly 
changing  the  subject  showed  that  he  was  not  listening  to 
what  was  being  said.  Jack  who  had  been  unsuccessfully 
trying  to  entertain  him,  thought  him  unaccountably  dull; 
and  Mrs.  Barney  stole  quietly  out  of  the  room  at  last — 
to  go  to  bed,  her  nephew  suspected. 

Andrew's  eyes  were  watching  the  door  as  it  closed 
upon  her,  and  when  Holden  met  them  again,  he  saw 
at  once  that  now  Mason  was  ready  to  speak. 

' '  You've  not  looked  in  upon  us  very  lately, "  he  began. 

Jack  was  busier  than  usual,  and  had  been  out  of  town 
two  days. 

"I  wish  you  would  come,"  persisted  Andrew;  "per 
haps  you  could  help  me.  There's  a  screw  loose  some 
where  down  at  our  house." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  221 

"A  screw  loose?"  repeated  Jack. 

' '  Ye-es, "  said  the  other,  and  paused.  ' '  Kitty  is  sick, " 
he  went  on,  "and  it  is  not  a  case  for  a  physician;  the 
poor  child  is  suffering  acutely  from  an  hallucination. 
You  may  have  heard  something  of  it?"  he  added 
abruptly. 

"No — well,  yes — I  don't  know,  it  is  possible.  What 
is  the  hallucination  ?  " 

"It  is  an  idea  about  Helen  Bell  thgt  has  taken  hold 
of  her." 

"Yes;  I  have  heard  her  speak  strangely  of  Miss  Bell." 

' '  Um  ! "  said  Andrew,  and  meditated  a  few  moments. 
"Depend  upon  it,  Holden,  she  suffers  from  her  belief; 
the  poor  thing  is  as  really  sick  as  if  she  had  a  fever, 
indeed  it  is  a  fevered  fancy." 

Jack  said  nothing,  although  he  felt  as  if  Mason  were 
waiting  for  his  acquiescence.  He  could  not  tell  Kitty's 
husband  his  opinion  of  her  state  of  mind,  for  he  did 
not  judge  her  with  the  same  leniency. 

"She  has  what  she  calls  'her  proofs, '"  continued  the 
other,  "and  I  am  really  afraid  she  will  get  herself  into 
some  trouble.  You,  as  a  lawyer,  can  warn  her  of  the 
danger." 

"I'm  adrift  now,  Mason;  I  have  never  heard  a  word 
from  your  wife  that  the  law  could  take  hold  of  in  any 
possible  way.  What  do  you  mean  ?  " 


222  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"She  is  possessed  with  the  idea  that  Helen — but  I 
would  rather  have  her  tell  you  herself.  I  shall  trust 
your  knowledge  to  convince  her  of  her  mistake;  and 
then,  you  know,  the  opinion  of  an  outsider  has  often 
more  weight  than  the  same  opinion  given  in  one's  own 
family. " 

"I  know  that.  But  my  legal  knowledge  is  rather 
rusty,  I'm  afraid,  from  want  of  use.  I  ought  to  be 
ashamed  of  myself  not  to  have  practiced." 

"  Yes,"  said  Mason  deliberately,  "it  would  have  been 
a  good  thing;  you  might  have  given  your  work  to  people 
that  needed  it." 

' '  I  see, "  returned  Jack  gravely;  ' '  when  I  find  what 
others  do,  I  feel  myself  a  very  good-for-nothing 
fellow. " 

' '  Very, "  drawled  Andrew.  ' '  Well,  then,  you  will  be 
gin  to  improve  by  doing  something  for  Kitty." 

"I  will  try,   certainly." 

"Or,"  said  Andrew  rising,  "it  may  be  possible  that 
it  will  prove  to  be  Helen  Bell  whom  you  must  help. 
Are  you  ready  for  that,  too?" 

"I  will  come  to-morrow." 

The  next  day  Holden  saw  all  the  family  when  he 
called  upon  Mrs.  Mason,  for  she  asked  him  into  the 
morning  room  and  showed  a  desire  for  general  conver 
sation.  Andrew  was  in  excellent  spirits,  and  Jack  began 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  223 

to  think  he  must  have  been  playing  some  joke  upon  him 
the  night  before. 

"Holden,"  said  the  subject  of  his  meditations,  "I. 
must  ask  you  to  excuse  us  this  morning,  for  I  promised 
to  drive  these  young  ladies  of  mine  to  the  'Oaks,'  and 
our  friends  will  be  expecting  us.  I  want  to  start  within 
ten  minutes.  Come,  Bertha,  don't  take  those  '  two  more 
stitches'  you're  so  fond  of." 

"We'll  be  ready,"  answered  Jenny,  giving  Bertha's 
shoulder  a  gentle  tattoo  as  she  walked  past  her  out  of 
the  room. 

"  It  will  do  just  as  well  by  and  by,"  responded  Bertha 
sullenly,  "and  Mr.  Holden  came  to  see  you." 

"No,  I  did  not,"  laughed  Jack;  "  I  inquired  for  ''nary 
a  gintleman  at  all.'  I  insist  upon  your  not  losing  your 
drive,  and  disappointing  your  friends  on  my  account, 
Miss  Edgerly/'  he  added,  "  if  you  even  propose  it,  I  shall 
go  away  immediately." 

"Where  is  Mrs.  Edgerly?"  asked  Jenny  coming  back 
bonneted  and  cloaked. 

"She  has  been  summoned,"  drawled  Mason,  "to  see 
a  visitor  of  distinction.  She  wants  a  new  cook,  and  an 
Irish  lady,  a  professor  of  the  culinary  art,  has  just  called 
to  look  her  over  and  see  how  she  will  suit." 

Andrew  and  the  two  ladies  drove  off,  Mrs.  Edgerly 
did  not  return,  and  Jack  was  left  alone  with  Mrs.  Mason. 


224  A    LA-ZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

He  remembered  that  other  morning,  early  in  the  win 
ter,  when  such  disappointment  had  come  to  him  through 
a  little  confidential  conversation  with  this  woman  of 
charming  manners.  Now,  it  was  the  last  of  April,  the 
snow  had  gone,  and  on  a  day  so  brilliant  as  this  the 
earth  seemed  growing  more  beautifully  green  every  hour. 
The  fire  on  the  hearth  had  been  allowed  to  die  down  to 
a  few  scattered  coals,  and  the  sun-warmed  air  came  softly 
in  at  an  open  south  window. 

But  there  was  a  change,  too,  in  Kitty;  she  was  not 
so  alert,  so  smiling,  so  irresistible  as  she  had  been  then. 
To-day  her  hands  lay  listless  in  her  lap;  she  looked  thin 
ner  than  a  few  months  ago,  and  there  was  certainly  a 
shadow  upon  her  face.  Holden  could  not  tell  how  much 
of  this  he  should  have  noticed  had  nothing  been  said  to 
him,  but  now  he  saw  it  all  plainly  enough. 

"Bertha  has  really  improved  wonderfully  within  the 
last  year,"  she  said  taking  up  the  girl's  work  and  ex 
amining  it  critically.  "She  is  so  much  more  careful 
and  thoughtful  than  she  used  to  be." 

"I  am  glad  she  pleases  you  better  as  you  live  to 
gether  longer,"  Jack  answered.  "As  to  improvement, 
why  of  course,  there's  room  for  that  in  almost  every 
body.  " 

"'Almost  everybody?'  Do  you  know  anybody  per 
fect?" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  225 

"Not  absolutely,  but  so  nearly  perfect  that  I  can't  see 
what  change  ought  to  be  made. " 

"Then,  one  of  three  things  is  true,  Mr.  Holden — you 
know  the  persons,  or  person,  very  slightly;  you  have  no 
power  of  criticism;  or  you  are  in  love." 

She  looked  into  his  face  with  sudden  penetration  as 
she  spoke. 

"  Whichever  you  please,  Mrs.  Mason;  the  most  nearly 
perfect  human  being  I  ever  knew  was  a  man;  others 
may  be  growing  to  the  same  moral  height,  but  he  had 
rounded  his  threescore  years,  and  possibilities  had  ma 
tured  into  deeds  in  him." 

"Oh!"  said  Kitty.      "Yes,   I  understand." 

She  spoke  of  something  else;  and  after  this  the  subject 
of  conversation  changed  again  in  a  desultory  way;  but  it 
never  seemed  to  come  any  nearer  to  the  matter  Holden 
was  waiting  to  hear  about.  He  grew  impatient,  and  won 
dered  if  she  were  waiting  for  him  to  introduce  it,  or  if 
Andrew  had  not  told  her  ef  his  last  evening's  errand. 
' '  He  may  have  left  me, "  Jack  thought,  ' '  to  use  my  own 
discretion."  They  were  speaking  of  something  that  had 
happened  during  the  winter,  and  it  was  easy  to  ask  if  any 
of  the  family  had  heard  from  Miss  Bell  lately. 

"Not  directly  for  nearly  a  fortnight,"  she  answered, 
"but  I  have  had  news  from  her  through  a  friend,  a 
gentleman  much  interested  in  her  movements." 


226  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Indeed!"  cried  Holden  with  more  emphasis  than 
he  meant  to  use.  He  added  quietly,  ' '  May  I  ask  if  it 
is  Mr.  Knight  ?  " 

"Yes." 

He  did  not  like  her  smile. 

' '  The  young  man  paid  her  a  good  deal  of  attention 
here,"  he  said  coolly.  "It  is  not  surprising  that  she  in 
terests  people." 

' '  Certainly  not  that  she  interests  people  of  that 
kind." 

"I  thought  Knight  was  a  friend  of  yours,  Mrs. 
Mason  ? " 

"Friendly  to  me,  Mr.   Holden!" 

"  I  do  not  pretend  to  understand  you,  but  I  know 
you  would  not  introduce  a  gentleman  into  your  home 
unless  he  were  a  person  it  was  advisable  to  have  there. " 

There  was  a  troubled  expression  in  his  face. 

Kitty  laughed  derisively. 

' '  He  was  the  very  safest  kind  of  person  to  have  about 
one — under  the  circumstances." 

"'Under  the  circumstances,'  Mrs.  Mason?  You  are 
sphinx-like  this  morning." 

"Am  I?" 

"You  certainly  are.  But  you  won't  be  sphinx-like 
enough  to  tear  me  to  pieces,  I  know,"  he  added  smil 
ing,  " if  I  don't  guess  your  riddle." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  227 

"No,  I  will  not.  It  is  a  much  more  difficult  riddle 
than  the  one  about  the  creature  that  went  on  four  legs 
in  the  morning,  two  at  noon,  and  three  at  night,  for 
that  turned  out  to  be  human,  and  this  is  of  something 
quite  inhuman,  something  monstrous,  which  you  could 
never  believe,  unless  you  had  the  proofs  of  it,  as  I 
have. " 

Holden  was  silent,  waiting  to  hear  more.  But  Kitty 
was  silent,  too.  At  last  she  said, 

"Speech  would  be  a  relief  to  me,  Mr.  Holden,  if 
I  felt  it  were  wise.  Yet,  why  shouldn't  I  venture  to 
tell  you  something  that  everybody  will  know  very  soon  ? 
I  don't  see  why  I  can't,  though  Mr.  Knight  cautioned 
me  to  give  no  warning.  But  you  already  know  what 
her  nature  really  is." 

"Whose  nature?" 

"Helen  Bell's." 

' '  I  know  she  is  one  of  the  noblest  women  it  has 
ever  been  my  lot  to  meet.  Of  this  I  have  become  con 
vinced,  Mrs.  Mason. " 

Kitty's  listlessness  had  gone,  her  face  quivered  with 
eagerness,  and  there  was  the  same  fierce  look  in  her 
eyes  that  Jenny  had  once  seen  there.  She  made  a 
sharp  gesture  of  denial. 

"If  this  'noble  woman'  had  had  her  way,  I  should 
now  be  in  my  grave." 


228  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Jack  sat  staring  at  her.  This  was  her  hallucination? 
Poor  Mason  ! 

Kitty's  face  grew  to  a  tragic  solemnity  as  she  added, 

"My  life  has  been  in  danger  for  weeks,  Mr.  Holden. 
But  for  a  special  Providence  she  would  have  succeeded, 
and  I  should  not  be  living  to-day." 

"I  am  very  sorry  for  you,   Mrs.   Mason." 

"Thank  you.  No  doubt  you  must  be.  The  danger 
is  over  now;  but  I  have  suffered  very  acutely.  I  have 
been  compelled  to  keep  constant  watch  and  ward,  for 
I  would  almost  rather  have  died  than  have  had  any- 
such  thing  come  out  against  a  guest  staying  in  our 
house  at  the  time — it  would  have  been  such  a  disgrace. 
Now,  the  sooner  it  comes,  the  better.  Yet  Mr.  Mason 
has  no  sympathy  with  me;  he  laughs  at  me,  or  begs 
me  to  be  'sensible,'  or  turns  away  looking  so  distressed 
I  have  to  give  up  talking  about  it." 

' '  He  sees  the  matter  as  every  one  must,  I  suppose, 
and  pities  you  for  the  dreadful  error  you  have  fallen 
into." 

Kitty  threw  herself  back  in  despair. 

"You,  too!"  she  cried.  "But  you  must  believe, 
both  of  you,  when  you  have  the  clear  proofs  before 
you.  You  shall  have  them  to-day.  Listen  !  " 

Jack  was  impressed  by  the  difference  between  her 
manner  now  and  in  that  last  conversation  about  Helen 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  229 

Bell.  Then,  as  he  saw  in  looking  back  to  it,  she  had 
been  at  ease,  smiling,  wary,  skillful  in  putting  her 
statements  in  the  best  light,  and  chaining  them  to 
trivial  facts  to  make  the  latter  weigh  heavily  against 
the  accused.  But  to-day  she  was  pale  and  grave,  and 
almost  tearfully  earnest.  It  seemed  to  him  that  her 
overwhelming  belief  in  the  truth  of  what  she  was  saying 
swept  away  all  thought  of  how  she  was  saying  it,  and 
that  she  was  more  natural  than  he  had  ever  seen  her. 

He  followed  her  words  carefully  while  these  thoughts 
were  going  through  his  mind.  She  was  speaking  of 
the  severe  cold  she  had  taken  in  February  during  her 
husband's  absence,  of  her  refusal  to  have  the  doctor 
sent  for,  and  of  Helen's  bringing  her  some  medicine 
in  the  night  while  she  was  coughing  badly.  She  re 
lated  her  refusal  to  swallow  it  on  account  of  its  bitter 
taste,  and  Helen's  anger,  and  attempt  to  persuade  her. 

"And  if  I  had  swallowed  it,"  she  finished,  "I 
should  have  been  a  dead  woman,  for  that  bitterness  was 
strychnine. " 

Her  listener  smiled. 

' '  Don't  you  know, "  he  said,  ' '  that  physicians  some 
times  prescribe  this  prepared  with  other  things?  I  be 
lieve  in  proper  amount  it  is  a  tonic." 

"I  do  know  it.  But  I  saw  that  prescription  after 
ward —  I  sent  for  it  —  and  there  was  no  such  thing 


230  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

mentioned  in  it.  And,  besides,  I  have  found  since 
there  was  enough  strychnine  in  the  phial  to  have  killed 
a  dozen  men." 

' '  Good  Heavens  !  "  cried  Jack.  ' '  She  will  not  take 
any?  You  told  her  about  it?" 

Kitty  laughed  in  scorn. 

' '  I  have  not  told  her  one  word  of  it;  but  you  need 
have  no  uneasiness  as  to  her  making  any  such  mistake. " 

"But  she  may  have  a  cough  at  any  time,  and  go  to 
this;  she  may  be  about  to  use  it  to-day.  Mrs.  Mason, 
you  must  write — now — this  moment — -and  warn  her." 

"Oh,   no,"  she  answered. 

' '  But  for  your  own  safety  you  must  write.  When 
you  know  of  such  danger  and  do  nothing  to  prevent 
accident,  it  is  guilt." 

"  Guilt !  "  cried  Kitty,  "/guilty  ?  This  is  too  much  ! 
For  my  own  safety,  then,  Mr.  Holden,  since  you  con 
descend  to  have  any  thought  for  that,  which  I  must  say 
did  not  appear  at  first,  the  phial  is  not  now  in  Miss 
Bell's  possession." 

"Ah!" 

The  deep  sigh  of  relief  showed  how  intense  his  anx 
iety  had  been. 

"I  knew  of  an  apothecary,"  he  added,  "or  rather 
an  apothecary's  clerk,  who  gave  oxalic  acid  in  place  of 
Epsom  salts,  and  the  patient  took  it.  Her  life  was 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  231 

saved,  but  the  culpable  carelessness  cost  the  man  a 
good  round  sum,  as  it  should." 

"Things  like  that  happen  once  in  a  while,  no  doubt; 
not  so  often  as  people  imagine,"  was  the  answer;  "but 
this  was  no  apothecary's  blunder." 

Holden  sat  upright,  and  met  Kitty  Mason's  significant 
look  with  what  calmness  he  could  summon,  for  he  re 
membered  this  was  her  hallucination,  and  he  must  rea 
son  with  her,  and  convince  her,  thus  overthrowing  her 
horrible  fancies.  To  do  this  he  must  hear  her  out. 

"This  was  no  apothecary's  blunder,"  she  repeated, 
"it  was  Helen  Bell's  deliberate  intention.  She  was  not 
pleased  with  my  frank  speech  to  you  about  her,  and 
this  is  the  way  she  took  to  wreak  her  displeasure." 

Jack  could  no  longer  sit  still;  he  began  to  walk  up 
and  down  the  room  hastily,  and  the  great  vein  in  his 
forehead  was  swollen  and  throbbing. 

"Do  you  know,  Mrs.  Mason,"  he  said  stopping  be 
fore  her,  "that  the  law  can  take  hold  of  such  an 
accusation  as  this,  and  punish  you  for  it  ? " 

"Certainly — if  it  is  false.     But  this  is  true." 

"I  know  that  is  impossible.  But  why  do  you  be 
lieve  it  ? " 

"Am  I  so  used  to  living  with  criminals — "  Holden's 
face  flushed  and  his  hands  shut  involuntarily — "that  I 
should  suspect  such  a  thing,  unless  the  fact  stared  me 


232  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

in  the  face  ?  "  pursued  Kitty.  ' '  She  was  too  ready  to 
give  me  this  medicine,  and  too  angry  because  I  refused 
to  take  it,  not  to  have  had  some  purpose.  I  was  sure 
of  that  when  I  came  to  think  it  over.  And  will  you 
tell  me,  Mr.  Holden,  if  you  suppose  guests  are  usually 
so  thoughtful  as  to  carry  a  tea-spoon  upstairs  with  them 
at  night,  lest  some  member  of  the  household  should 
chance  to  have  a  cough  ?  They  must  have  something 
they  are  very  anxious  to  administer,  to  do  that." 

"That  proves  no  guilt,   Mrs.   Mason." 

' '  And  she  had  been  sitting  up, "  Kitty  resumed — 
"for  what?  She  could  not  have  been  at  her  inter 
minable  painting  at  that  hour,  midnight  She  was  wait 
ing  for  some  sign  from  me  to  give  her  the  opportunity 
she  had  planned  for.  She  came  in,  oh,  so  promptly, 
and  you  should  have  seen  the  look  in  her  face  when 
I  refused  to  swallow  her  stuff.  She  was  perfectly  furi 
ous.  She  must  have  an  angelic  temper.  I  have  thought 
a  good  deal  about  her  excellent  management.  Every 
body  else  in  the  house  was  asleep.  Who  would  ever 
know  she  had  given  me  anything,  or  spoken  to  me  that 
night?  Do  you  see?" 

Jack  walked  back  and  forth  a  few  times  without  an 
swering.  At  length  he  said,  looking  toward  her  with  a 
smile, 

"So  you  imagine  Miss  Bell  to  have  the  gift  of  pre- 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  233 

science  ?  She  knew  before  coming  here  that  you  would 
disparage  her,  and  so  provided  herself  in  advance  with  a 
dose  of  strychnine  ?  " 

"You  forget  yourself,  Mr.  Holden,"  cried  Kitty,  her 
eyes  flashing  at  his  raillery  and  the  obnoxious  word  ' '  dis 
parage.  "  ' '  What  did  I  ever  say  against  Helen  which 
time  has  not  shown  to  have  been  too  lenient  ? " 

' '  Everything.  She  is  not  what  you  try  to  persuade 
yourself." 

Kitty  was  about  to  reply  at  length,  when  suddenly 
her  look  of  anger  vanished,  and  she  broke  into  a  light 
laugh. 

• '  You  don't  believe  in  that  French  proverb,  Les  absens 
ont  toujours  tortp  Very  well,  I  honor  your  defense  of 
the  absent.  Continue  to  be  Miss  Bell's  advocate — "  Jack 
started  slightly  at  the  word,  and  a  look  of  resolution  swept 
over  his  face — "and  let  me  tell  you,"  Kitty  went  on, 
' '  that  I  am  not  so  stupid  a  woman  as  to  have  made  the 
blunder  you  generously  attribute  to  me.  I  never  once 
imagined  Helen  brought  the  strychnine  here  with  her, 
though  she  undoubtedly  did  bring  the  phial  of  medicine 
it  was  in.  She  added  the  poison  afterward,  and  I  have 
proof  she  got  it  in  town." 

"What !  "  cried  Holden.  Then  his  lips  framed  a  rep 
etition  of  the  word,  but  no  sound  came  as  he  opened 
them;  he  could  only  catch  his  breath  gaspingly,  and 


234  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

stand  with  his  eyes  fixed  upon  her,  and  his  face  deadly 
pale. 

"Yes, "said  his  companion,  "she  went  out  that  very 
afternoon,  in  the  beginning  of  the  storm,  and  bought 
this  strychnine.  If  you  want  to  be  very  sure,  go  and 
ask  that  apothecary  on  Willard  Street.  I  have  asked  him. " 

"You  have  accused  Helen  in  this  way?" 

Kitty  looked  at  him  with  her  old  smile. 

"Not  quite  so  fast,  Mr.  Holden.  The  young  lady 
was  our  guest  at  the  time,  and  I  believe  in  the  old  codes 
that  would  not  let  a  man  lay  hands  on  his  deadliest  foe 
so  long  as  that  foe  is  his  guest.  You  may  be  very  sure 
I  gave  Waters  not  the  least  suspicion  of  what  I  was  really 
trying  to  learn.  But  I  found  out,  all  the  same." 

Holden  was  silent.  He  was  beginning  to  recover  his 
equanimity.  Mrs.  Mason's  first  attack  upon  Helen  had 
not  been  the  result  of  hallucination,  that  had  been  pure 
malice,  and  he  thought  it  not  unlikely  that  now,  in  this, 
the  same  malice  was  an  ingredient  large  enough  to  poison 
the  innocuous  medicine. 

"He  remembered  Helen  perfectly, "  Kitty  said.  ' ' There 
was  another  person  in  the  shop  at  the  same  time,  buying 
glycerine.  He  had  seen  her  before  more  than  once,  but 
could  not  think  of  her  name.  He  was  struck  by  the  con 
trast  between  the  two  purchases.  Helen  told  him  she  had 
a  little  pet  dog  very  sick,  and  she  was  afraid  of  its  going 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  235 

mad.  She  must  have  given  him  a  long  description  of  the 
creature  pictured  in  her  imagination,  for  he  was  quite  in 
terested,  and  asked  me  whether  the  lady  found  it  necessary 
to  put  an  end  to  her  pet.  I  got  out  of  the  affair  nicely 
by  telling  him  I  did  not  know  any  lady  with  a  dog  in 
that  state.  He  said  this  lady  was  probably  a  stranger 
who  looked  like  the  person  I  had  described.  Then  I 
came  away,  and  he  forgot  all  about  it." 

"Is  it  like  Miss  Bell  to  go  into  a  minute  description 
of  her  experience  and  her  feelings  about  anything  to  a 
stranger  ? " 

' '  Exactly  what  I  noticed.  The  consciousness  of  guilt 
gives  a  person  a  new  manner  at  once.  She  must  explain 
why  she  wanted  the  strychnine." 

"You  strain  probabilities  to  make  them  fit  together, 
Mrs.  Mason. " 

"Is  a  thing  that  has  actually  been  attempted  a  prob 
ability  ? " 

"You  are  not  sure  of  Miss  Bell's  identity  with  the  lady 
who  bought  the  strychnine." 

' '  I  am.  Only  I  would  not  say  so  to  Mr.  Waters.  He 
described  her  perfectly  to  me,  even  to  that  very  becoming 
black  velvet  hat  she  wears  down  over  her  forehead." 

Holden  sat  thinking. 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  to  clear  Miss  Bell  in  your 
own  mind  as  she  ought  to  be  cleared  ?  "  he  asked  finally. 


236  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"To  clear  her?"  echoed  his  listener  with  a  wrathful 
astonishment  in  her  eyes.  "I  should  think  you  would 
ask  how  I  am  to  save  myself  from  any  further  attempts 
on  her  part." 

"It  is  impossible  she  ever  made  any,   Mrs.   Mason." 

Kitty's  eyes  were  colorless  with  anger. 

"You  do  not  believe  me,   Mr.   Holden?" 

' '  I  see  you  are  convinced  of  it  yourself,  but  I  certainly 
believe  you  mistaken." 

' '  You  will  discover  you  are  the  one  mistaken. " 

Her  look  of  anger  and  threatening  gave  such  force  to 
her  words  that  a  dreadful  fear  seized  upon  Holden. 

He  stood  watching  her  in  silence,  until  seeing  no 
change  in  her  resolute  expression,  he  said  again, 

' '  Do  you  realize  how  grave  an  offense  it  is  to  make  a 
charge  like  this  falsely  against  a  person  ?  If  you  dare  to 
do  this,"  he  went  on  vehemently,  "you  shall  feel  the 
weight  of  your  act,  I  promise,  and  I  will  keep  the 
promise. " 

Kitty  listened  quietly.  Then  she  leaned  back  in  her 
chair,  and  smiled  in  a  security  that  made  a  thrill  of  hor 
ror  run  through  him. 

"You  have  a  somewhat  threatening  manner,  Mr. 
Holden;  but  I  can  find  it  in  my  heart  to  excuse  you. 
No  wonder  you  are  thrown  off  your  balance." 

' '  What  do  you  mean  to  do  ? "  he  asked. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  237 

"In  this  matter?     Nothing." 

She  saw  Jack's  intense  anxiety  give  place  to  a  half  smile 
of  relief. 

"The  thing  must  be  sifted  to  the  very  bottom,"  he 
went  on.  "I  will  undertake  to  do  it.  None  of  us 
ought  to  rest  until  it  is  done." 

"Some  of  us  assuredly  will  not.  But,  with  thanks  for 
your  kind  offer,  a  person,  who  understands  the  business 
much  better  than  either  you  or  I,  has  undertaken  to  do 
that,  Mr.  Holden. " 

"You  have  thrown  it  into  other  hands?  You  have 
told  your  cruel  suspicions  to  a  stranger  ? " 

"Mr.  Knight  can  scarcely  be  called  a  stranger  to  Miss 
Bell  now,  whatever  he  was  a  few  weeks  ago;  he  has  an 
intimate  acquaintance,  not  only  with  her  movements,  but 
with  her  motives." 

' '  Who  is  Mr.  Knight  ?  "  asked  Holden  with  the  eager 
abruptness  that  a  startling  suspicion  arouses. 

"Mr.    Knight,"  said  Kitty,    "is  a  detective." 

A  strange  thrill  of  joy,  like  a  gold  thread  in  a  web 
of  black,  shot  through  the  terror  that  seized  upon  him 
at  these  words. 

But  it  disappeared  directly,  for  the  situation  was  very 
grave.  If  there  was  enough  to  warrant  a  detective  in 
dogging  Helen's  steps  for  weeks,  circumstantial  evidence 
must  be  strong  against  her. 


238  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  How  could  you  !  "  he  cried.  ' '  And  do  it,  too,  with 
out  having  given  her  any  chance  to  explain,  or  to  justify 
herself! " 

"She  will  have  chance  enough  for  that  in  good  time." 

"The  shock  of  the  accusation  will  kill  her.  At  least 
allow  her  to  speak  for  herself  before  you  make  your  sus 
picion  public." 

"That  is  to  say,  'Invite  her  to  take  a  bee-line  for  the 
North  Pole  or  the  Amazon  forests. '  I  told  you  the  mat 
ter  had  passed  out  of  my  hands." 

' '  Don't  imagine  that  I  fear  for  her,  except  for  the  hor 
ror  it  will  bring  upon  her.  She  is  as  innocent  of  any 
such  act  as  you  are." 

Kitty  looked  into  his  face,  pale  with  an  agony  written 
upon  it. 

"  Mr.  Holden,  you  are  under  an  hallucination  respect 
ing  Helen  Bell." 

In  spite  of  the  situation,  a  grim  smile  quivered  along 
Jack  Holden's  lips. 

After  a  pause  he  said, 

"I  don't  see  how  a  Boston  detective  could  stay  in 
Lowton  so  long,  and  go  about  so  much,  without  being 
recognized  by  somebody." 

Mrs.   Mason  smiled. 

"That  was  thought  of,"  she  answered.  "Mr.  Knight 
is  a  Connecticut  man;  he  has  lived  only  a  few  months  in 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  239 

Boston,  and  the  very  small  risk  there  was  we  had  to  run. 
Probably  no  casual  acquaintance  would  have  recognized 
him,  detectives  have  so  many  ways  of  disguising  them 
selves.  And  you  must  remember,"  she  added  haughtily, 
"he  was  in  different  society  from  any  his  associates  would 
be  apt  to  frequent,  and  I  don't  believe  he  went  about 
everywhere  quite  so  freely  as  he  appeared  to  do." 
Holden  left  Kitty  before  Mason's  return. 
"If  I  had  been  an  industrious  man  with  a  brain  in' 
splendid  trim  now,  from  healthful  work,"  he  said  to 
himself  as  he  walked  home,  "I  should  reap  the  reward 
of  it  to-day.  My  indolent  self-indulgence  recoils  on  my 
own  head,  and  that  is  a  small  part  of  the  retribution." 
"Aunt  Delia,"  he  said  entering  the  house  hurriedly, 
"I  must  take  the  next  train  to  town;  and  I  may  have 
to  be  away  a  few  days,  I  cannot  tell  now." 

"O  Jack,  must  you  go?     How  lonely  I  shall  be!" 
"Send  for  Alice  to  come  and  stay  with  you." 
"But  you  may  be  back  to-morrow,  after  all." 
' '  What  matter  if  I  am  ?     A  change  will  do  Alice  good, 
and  she  will  amuse  you." 

Holden  thought,  as  he  said  this,  that  it  would  be  very 
convenient  for  him  if  Mrs.  Barney  had  some  occupation 
now. 

"But  I  thought  you  always  laughed  at  Alice,  though 
she  is  a  distant  cousin,  you  know,  Jack  ? " 


240  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Don't  tell  her  I  ever  laughed  at  her,  and  I'm  sure  I 
shall  not  do  it  this  time." 

Mrs.  Barney  noticed  nothing  peculiar  in  her  nephew's 
tone  as  he  made  this  promise,  nor  did  he  hear  the  assev 
erations  that  she  should  never  mention  his  fault,  and  her 
complaint  of  his  haste.  He  was  already  in  his  room, 
throwing  a  few  things  into  his  valise. 

His  horse  and  man  were  waiting  at  the  door  as  he 
came  down,  and,  with  a  word  of  farewell  to  his  aunt,  he 
was  off  before  she  could  gather  breath  for  a  single 
question. 

She  consoled  herself,  however,  by  reflecting  that  this 
did  not  make  so  much  difference  as  it  might  seem  to  do, 
for  Jack  never  would  answer  questions  when  he  was  in  a 
hurry.  He  was  ' '  downright  obstinate, "  she  said  to  her 
self,  "a  real  Mede  and  Persian"  about  the  thing. 

She  remembered,  though,  that  with  all  his  haste  he 
had  found  time  to  give  her  practical  advice,  and  she  de 
termined  to  take  it,  and  to  send  for  Alice. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

IF  one  could  move  with  the  speed  of  electricity  !  And 
this,  unless  it  should  outstrip  thought,  would  at 
times  seem  too  slow  for  us. 

So  Holden  found  the  speed  of  steam.  Only  his  watch 
could  convince  him  that  the  train  was  running  at  its 
usual  rate.  For  any  of  these  precious  moments  might 
be  the  last  in  which  he  could  do  any  thing  to  save  Helen. 
If  he  could  see  Knight  immediately,  it  seemed  to  him 
that  something  might  be  done.  This  was  the  first  step. 

On  reaching  town,  he  drove  at  once  to  the  address 
Mrs.  Mason  had  given  him.  He  did  not  inquire  for 
Mr.  Knight,  however,  but  for  Detective  Day. 

That  gentleman  would  not  return  until  late  in  the 
evening,  the  inquirer  had  still  several  hours  on  his  hands. 
They  crawled  by  at  last. 

When  next  he  asked  for  him,  the  detective  was  at 
home. 

He  was  sitting  wrapped  in  a  gayly  flowered  dressing- 


242  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

gown,  his  feet  in  a  pair  of  brilliant  wrought  slippers, 
and  was  busily  reading  the  papers  as  Holden  was  shown 
into  the  room.  The  latter  looked  at  him  scrutinizingly, 
amazed  at  seeing  how  much  of  his  style  had  been  hung 
up  in  his  dress  coat.  There  was  a  certain  jauntiness 
about  him,  but  it  required  self-control  and  adventitious 
aids  to  make  it  gentility.  Holden  had  not  left  his  name 
in  the  afternoon,  and  to-night  was  shown  in  unan 
nounced,  so  that  he  had  time  to  observe  before  the  other 
looked  up  from  the  paragraph  which  interested  him,  how 
very  much  Detective  Day  off  duty  differed  from  the  gen 
tlemanly,  even  if  somewhat  too  elaborate  Mr.  Knight. 
Kitty  was  right,  a  casual  acquaintance  might  easily  have 
passed  him  by  unrecognized. 

There  was  a  difference,  too,  in  his  greeting.  He  did 
not  say,  "Ah  !  Holden,  how  are  you?  "  in  the  off-hand, 
Lowton  way  which,  although  Jack  could  find  nothing  in 
it  to  resent,  had  always  annoyed  him.  He  was  equally 
unembarrassed  to-night,  but  his  ease  was  that  of  business 
relations,  not  of  social  intercourse.  If  he  felt  surprise  in 
recognizing  Holden,  his  expression  of  it  was  too  slight  for 
the  other  to  perceive. 

Jack  told  his  errand  with  the  directness  it  demanded, 
ending  with  an  assurance  that  the  character  of  the  lady  in 
question  made  it  impossible  she  should  have  ever  held  the 
purpose  Mrs.  Mason  was  trying  to  fasten  upon  her,  and 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  243 

a  reference  to  the  deceptive  nature  of  circumstantial 
evidence. 

' '  Yes,  it  is  strange, "  returned  the  quondam  Mr.  Knight 
twisting  the  ends  of  his  mustache  meditatively,  "how 
many  of  our  aggravated  cases  are  just  where  one  would 
naturally  suppose  the  thing  impossible." 

He  had  passed  over  the  last  remark. 

"Have  you  informed  Miss  Bell  of  our  reasons — my 
reasons — for  being  interested  in  her  ? "  he  added. 

"It  is  the  very  thing  I  am  so  anxious  she  should  not 
know, "  cried  Jack.  ' '  I  have  not  seen  her  since  the  day 
she  left  Lowton." 

Mr.   Knight  smiled. 

"I  am  perfectly  aware  of  that.  All  the  young  lady's 
visitors,  as  well  as  her  movements  are  known  to  us." 
Holden  winced.  ' '  But  I  thought  it  possible  you  might 
correspond  with  her." 

"  I  have  told  her  nothing  about  it,"  he  answered,  ignor 
ing  the  impertinence  of  putting  the  question  in  this  way. 

"  You  have  been  wise,"  said  the  detective.  "It  would 
only  have  alarmed  the  lady  before  the  time,  and  she  could 
not  have  escaped  us." 

' '  That  would  be  the  last  thing  she  would  ever  try  to 
do,  if  you  left  her  free  as  air." 

Knight  bowed  and  smiled  with  the  manner  of  humor 
ing  a  man  in  his  mistake. 


244  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  If  you  think  my  object  is  to  try  to  buy  off  justice, " 
pursued  Holden  eagerly,  "you  were  never  more  mistaken. 
I  shall  never  rest  until  the  truth  comes  out  clearly.  But 
I  am  certain,  absolutely  certain,  of  Miss  Bell's  innocence, 
and  I  want  her  to  be  spared  the  consciousness  of  having 
ever  been  suspected  of  a  crime." 

' '  I  see. " 

"The  utmost  I  desire  is  a  little  time  to  investigate  the 
facts  before  you  speak.  Watch  all  her  goings  and  com 
ings  as  carefully  as  you  like,  and  mine  too,  if  you  choose 
— "  here  Knight  shook  his  head  in  silent  protest — "but 
give  me  this.  Do  nothing  in  haste.  There  is  some 
great  error  here;  I  want  a  few  days — say  a  week — to  solve 
it.  You  will  wait  that  time  ? " 

"Impossible,  sir." 

"You  have  waited  several,  now." 

' '  All  the  more  reason  for  no  further  delay.  I  agreed 
with  Mrs.  Mason  in  the  first  place  to  say  nothing  while 
the  young  lady  was  in  her  house." 

' '  Mrs.   Edgerly's  house. " 

"Indeed?  All  one  to  me.  And,  besides  I  was  not' 
ready  myself.  I  had  to  get  possession  of  that  phial.  She 
kept  it  locked  in  her  trunk,  and  I  had  no  chance  un 
til  the  night  of  the  masquerade  party.  I  managed  to  do 
it  then  with  a  key  Mrs.  Mason  had  kindly  enabled  me  to 
have  made  by  furnishing  me  with  a  wax  impression  of  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  245 

lock.  I  told  her  how  it  should  be  done.  Mrs.  Mason 
is  very  apt;  though  she  showed  no  wisdom,  Mr.  Holden, 
when  she  troubled  you  with  all  this." 

' '  Did  you  take  advantage  of  such  a  time  as  that  ? " 

' '  By  all  means.  One  of  the  best  chances  in  the  world. 
I  should  have  shown  myself  unfit  for  my  business  if  I  had 
let  it  slip.  Then,  there  were  a  few  other  things  to  be 
looked  after.  I  have  taken  my  time  about  these,  and 
have  quite  enjoyed  visiting  Miss  Bell  in  a  social,  friendly 
way.  But  I  am  all  ready  now,  have  a  very  fair  case  made 
up,  and  may  spring  the  trap  at  any  moment." 

Holden  made  an  instinctive  movement  of  dread,  and 
repulsion. 

"I  have  no  fear  as  to  the  result  of  your  attempt,"  he 
cried,  "but  the  publicity  of  the  thing  will  be  terrible;  it 
will  kill  her;  you  have  seen  so  much  of  her,  you  must 
have  noticed  her  pride." 

An  evil  look  came  into  the  detective's  eyes.  He  had, 
indeed,  been  very  sensible  of  it  in  his  consciousness  that 
he  had  not  acted  his  part  so  perfectly  that  Helen  Bell  had 
not  felt  him  to  be  less  than  he  appeared,  and  had  resented 
by  silent  dignity  those  occasional  slight  oversteppings  of 
respectful  distance  which  would  never  have  occurred  if 
his  manners  had  not  been  an  assumption.  Mr.  Knight 
was  therefore,  not  unwilling  to  break  her  pride. 

"She  will  come  out  of  it  with  honor — you  say/'  he 


246  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

answered.  "I  must  perform  my  duty,  that  is  all  my 
lookout,  and  it  is  a  part  of  it  to  be  prompt  in  whatever  I 
have  to  do.  At  any  rate,"  he  went  on,  "you  may  be 
perfectly  sure  the  blow  will  fall  the  hour  you  attempt  to 
communicate  with  Miss  Bell." 

Holden  sat  silent  with  his  eyes  on  the  ground  for  so 
long  a  time  that  Knight  wished  he  would  go,  and  leave 
him  free  to  finish  reading  his  newspapers. 

"Will  you  let  me  look  at  the  phial  of  Miss  Bell's  in 
your  possession?"  he  asked  finally.  "I  only  want  to 
examine  it  in  your  hands,"  he  added  in  answer  to  the 
other's  defiant  glance,  "to  see  the  number  of  the  pre 
scription.  " 

"Oh,  I  understand,"  said  the  detective.  "With  great 
pleasure,  sir,  by  and  by,  at  the  proper  time;  at  the  ex 
amination  if  you  wish.  Not  to-night." 

Holden  rose,  and  for  the  space  of  a  full  minute  stood 
looking  down  at  the  self-satisfied  little  man  in  contemp 
tuous  silence. 

Then  he  went  away  without  having  been  able  to  com 
pel  himself  even  to  bid  him  good-night 

But  in  the  street  his  anger  gave  place  to  something  still 
more  importunate.  The  detective's  conduct  was  impor 
tant  only  in  its  consequences,  and  Holden's  mind  turned 
upon  these. 

He  saw  that  he  must  have  the  number  of  that  prescrip- 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  247 

tion  immediately  and  learn  where  it  was  put  up.  He 
ought  to  have  done  this  in  Lowton.  But  he  had  not 
been  prepared  for  Knight's  behavior.  How  could  he 
get  the  needed  information  now  ? 

Telegraph  to  Mrs.  Mason.  He  knew  she  had  given 
the  detective  this  number,  and  the  name  of  the  apothecary 
before  he  got  possession  of  the  medicine  itself. 

But  in  the  office,  with  the  pen  in  his  hand  to  write 
the  telegram,  he  hesitated. 

There  was  no  predicting  what  Kitty  would  do,  he 
thought,  further  than  that  it  would  probably  be  some 
thing  disagreeable. 

He  sent  the  telegram  to  Andrew. 

' '  I  believe  when  Mason  speaks,  she  obeys  him, "  he 
reflected,  "though,  Heaven  knows,  she  does  a  good  many 
things  without  leave  or  license  from  him." 

He  waited  in  the  office  for  the  answer  which,  through 
his  insistence  perhaps,  came  promptly.  Then  it  was  too 
late  to  do  anything  more  that  night,  and  the  next  day 
the  opportunity  might  have  gone  by. 

The  morning  sky  was  as  clear  as  if  it  were  overhang 
ing  a  world  without  a  cloud  of  care  upon  it  But  it  was 
one  of  those  atmospheres  in  which  lurk  hidden  vapors 
that  often  gather  into  heavy  clouds  and  rain  before 
sunset. 

Holden  went  first  to  the  apothecary.     His  store  was 


248  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

in  the  same  town  with  Helen.  He  was  a  tall,  pleasant- 
faced  young  man  with  close-cropped  auburn  curls  and  the 
reddish  brown  eyes  that  often  accompany  this  color.  He 
was  decided  in  movement,  vivacious  in  expression.  Hold- 
en  had  a  heart-sinking  as  he  looked  at  him;  he  did  not 
appear  at  all  the  kind  of  man  to  make  blunders. 

Yet  Jack  was  sure  the  accident  must  have  happened 
here,  in  some  way,  if  not  stupidly. 

He  asked  for  a  list  of  the  ingredients  in  the  prescription 
he  named. 

This  was  given  him  with  evident  wonderment. 

He  then  bought  a  certain  amount  of  each  drug  in  the 
list,  and  slipping  the  different  bottles  into  his  pocket, 
went  directly  into  town  again  and  left  them  with  an  emi 
nent  chemist  to  be  examined  for  strychnine. 

He  had  not  caught  a  glimpse  of  Helen. 

He  wandered  about  the  city  to  pass  away  the  hours  un 
til  it  should  be  time  to  return  to  the  chemist.  It  was  im 
possible  to  read,  he  was  too  anxious  to  try  to  amuse  him 
self  in  any  way;  luncheon  helped  him  through  a  little  of 
the  time.  He  hoped  much  from  the  search,  yet  he  could 
not  help  feeling  that  Knight  must  have  done  this  same 
thing. 

He  kept  his  appointment  to  the  minute,  and  was 
obliged  to  wait  half  an  hour. 

Then  the  chemist  told  him  that  there  was  no  trace  of 


A    LAZY  MAWS    WORK.  249 

strychnine  in  any  of  the  medicines.  He  had,  of  course, 
not  had  time  for  any  careful  analysis,  but  they  seemed  to 
nim  unusually  pure.  He  should  recommend  the  apothe 
cary. 

Holden  had  scarcely  strength  to  stand  as  he  listened  to 
this  statement. 

He  walked  the  streets,  seeing  and  hearing  nothing  that 
was  going  on  about  him,  trying  to  think  out  what  ought 
to  be  done  next.  He  had  no  more  idea  than  before  that 
Helen  was  guilty,  but  she  was  in  terrible  danger. 

The  sky  had  darkened,  and  the  heavy  clouds  seemed 
overburdened  with  rain,  for  every  now  and  then  a  great 
drop  fell  to  the  earth  with  a  splash,  warning  the  foot-pas 
sengers  on  the  thronged  pavements  to  seek  shelter. 

Holden  did  not  notice  the  coming  storm,  he  had  al 
most  reached  his  hotel,  and  was  going  in  there  for  want 
of  anything  better  to  do,  when  something  made  him  look 
up;  he  had  been  walking  with  his  eyes  cast  down,  paying 
no  more  attention  to  the  passers-by  than  was  necessary 
not  to  jostle  against  them.  The  street  was  not  so 
crowded  just  here,  and  he  saw  Helen  Bell  coming 
toward  him.  The  umbrella  held  over  her  head  showed 
that  the  rain  had  begun,  but  he  still  did  not  think  of  it; 
he  felt  a  sharp  spasm  of  pain  as  he  looked  at  the  grave 
serenity  of  her  face,  for  the  hand  that  held  the  umbrella 
so  carefully  over  her  head  and  accommodated  itself  so 


250  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

readily  to  her  motions,  was  the  hand  of  Mr.  Knight. 
His  steps  were  keeping  pace  with  hers,  and  his  watchful 
courtesy  of  manner  was  horrible  to  Jack.  Helen  seemed 
to  him  under  some  dreadful  spell  and  this  ever-present 
detective  a  monster  who  circled  around  and  around  her, 
coming  closer  and  closer,  until  in  his  grasp  not  even  her 
thoughts  would  be  free,  but  must  turn  constantly  upon 
the  agony  of  the  poisoned  thrust  he  was  to  give. 

It  was  not  given  yet. 

But  even  this  consolation  was  cut  short,  for  Knight  was 
looking  at  him  with  a  triumphant  leer  which  made  the 
other  clench  his  hands  to  prevent  himself  from  spring 
ing  upon  him.  Perhaps  she  would  not  even  get  home 
free. 

Holden  was  looking  straight  into  her  face  with  his 
thoughts  so  fixed  upon  the  horror  of  her  position  that  it 
was  not  until  he  stood  almost  on  a  line  with  them  in  pass 
ing  that  he  remembered  to  return  her  bow. 

As  soon  as  they  had  gone  by  he  turned  and  looked 
after  them,  perceiving  then  how  coldly  she  had  greeted 
him. 

In  another  moment  the  two  were  lost  to  sight  in  the 
endless  procession  on  the  sidewalk. 

Jack  kept  on  to  his  hotel,  picked  up  his  traps,  and 
went  home.  He  decided  that  Andrew  must  do  some 
thing  here.  At  all  events,  he  would  consult  him. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  251 

Andrew  was  out  of  town,  however,  not  expected  back 
until  very  late  at  night. 

Every  moment  he  would  buy  up  with  gold-dust,  if 
he  could,  and  he  must  wait  another  weary  night  with 
out  even  an  attempt  at  work.  In  his  restlessness  he 
even  thought  of  going  back  to  Boston  again,  but  he 
saw  that  in  this  way  he  might  lose  time.  He  must 
stay  and  do  nothing,  and  look  over  his  newspaper,  when 
he  did  not  even  know  whether  he  were  doing  the  wisest 
thing  or  the  most  foolish. 

Alice  had  come,  and  she  and  Mrs.  Barney  alternated 
between  gossipping  busily  together  and  turning  their 
combined  artillery  of  questions  upon  him.  He  did  not 
surrender  the  fortress  of  his  own  counsel,  however. 

"Oh,  it's  of  no  use,  Alice,"  said  Mrs.  Barney,  with  a 
spirited  twitch  of  her  knitting  ball,  "there  is  an  ob 
duracy  about  Jack  which  I'm  very  sorry  to  see; "  she 
ignored  the  presence  of  her  nephew  sitting  opposite  with 
a  Review  in  his  hand  as  completely  as  if  he  had  been 
a  lay  figure. 

"Why,"  responded  Alice,  accepting  her  hypothesis  and 
speaking  with  weighty  deliberation  of  tone,  "I  sup 
pose  it's  none  of  our  business  if  he  does  not  want  to 
say  why  he  went  away  in  such  a  hurry,  and  why  he 
looks  so  sick  to-night.  He  told  you  something  he  had 
undertaken  to  do  was  going  wrong." 


252  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"But  everything  that  is  his  business  is  mine,  too, 
when  I  am  so  interested  in  him,"  pursued  Aunt  Delia. 
"You  haven't  sufficient  imagination  to  teach  you  what 
my  feelings  must  be,  Alice." 

Alice,  thus  dubbed  the  unimaginative,  acquiesced  in 
silence.  She  had  not  a  high  opinion  of  herself,  and 
she  knew  that  nobody  else  had.  The  best  of  the  mat 
ter  was,  she  had  so  much  to  do  always  that  she  never 
found  time  to  give  this  more  than  a  passing  thought 
once  in  a  great  while.  Yet  her  dead  brother's  children, 
if  they  had  been  old  enough  to  speak  in  the  matter, 
would  have  borne  witness  that  she  understood  very  well 
how  an  aunt  should  feel. 

Jack  had  never  known  her  when  they  both  were  chil 
dren,  she  somewhat  the  elder,  and  living  a  few  miles 
from  Lowton.  It  was  only  within  the  last  few  years 
that  he  had  perceived  how  small  pleasure  her  lot  af 
forded  her  and  how  little  it  promised.  Since  this  time 
her  affairs  had  taken  a  turn  for  the  better.  She  could 
not  see  exactly  how  it  came  about,  but  this  took  noth 
ing  from  her  enjoyment  of  the  new  comforts.  She  told 
Holden  one  day  that  she  believed  she  should  always 
have  them  now;  he  thought  so  too. 

' '  He  is  not  always  wise  by  any  means, "  continued 
Aunt  Delia,  taking  fortune  at  the  flood,  for  a  patient 
listener  and  an  inexhaustible  subject  formed  the  climax 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  253 

of  her  satisfaction.  "For  instance,  now,  the  last  time 
I  went  to  Boston  I  saw  a  very  fine  picture  painted  by 
an  artist  we  know,  a  Miss  Bell,  whom  Jack  and  I 
helped  on  the  way  to  Lowton  through  that  dreadful 
storm  the  night  I  came  here." 

"I  don't  see  how,"  interposed  Holden. 

' '  Ah !  you're  listening.  You  know  what  is  said 
about  listeners." 

"Are  you  going  to  prove  it  to  me?" 

"Oh,  no;  I  was  only  going  to  say  I  praised  Miss 
Helen's  painting  very  much  to  you — by  the  by,  Alice, 
you  must  have  seen  her  at  our  party — and  of  course 
I  thought  you  would  buy  it.  But  you  didn't  take  the 
hint.  It  is  too  late  now;  the  thing  is  sold,  as  it  de 
served  to  be.  I  saw  it  in  the  paper.  Some  lady  who 
knows  how  to  adorn  her  house  purchased  it." 

Jack  made  no  answer.      He  began  another  paragraph. 

"I  remember  Miss  Bell,"  said  Alice  with  her  usual 
deliberation,  "and  I  have  seen  her  somewhere  since 
then,  but  I  can't  think  where  it  was.  No,  I  can't 
think,"  she  repeated  sitting  with  her  needle  poised  in 
her  hand,  and  her  slow-moving  brown  eyes  fixed  on 
the  shadowed  corner  of  the  room  which  represented 
vacancy.  Her  mouth  was  large,  but  it  closed  well, 
her  nose  was  undeniably  clumsy,  and  her  complexion 
decidedly  the  worse  for  her  dyspeptic  tendency  and 


254  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

too  careless  exposure  to  the  weather.  But  her  plain 
Jace  was  cheerful  and  reliable.  Jack  Holden,  glancing 
at  her  as  she  sat  trying  to  recall  where  she  had  seen 
Helen,  felt  a  respect  for  her  goodness.  Yet  he  was 
sure  he  could  never  help  being  amused  at  her  pre 
cise  speech  and  her  droll  ways.  He  had  been  obliged 
to  restrain,  a  smile  several  times  this  evening,  though 
never  mortal  felt  less  like  mirth  than  he  did  now. 

"I  wonder  where  it  was  I  did  see  her  last !  "  she  re 
iterated.  "No  matter  though,"  in  an  undertone  as  Mrs. 
Barney  spoke  to  her  on  another  subject.  In  answering 
she  forgot  all  about  Helen. 

But  her  question  gave  fresh  keenness  to  the  recollec 
tion  that  had  never  been  absent  from  Jack's  mind.  He 
could  not  bear  the  thought  of  where  and  how  compan 
ioned  he  had  seen  Helen  Bell  last.  The  security  of  his 
own  position,  the  serene  undercurrent  of  these  women's 
lives,  made  too  sharp  a  contrast  for  him.  Their  trivial 
talk  and  his  aunt's  petty,  half  good-humored  complaints 
jarred  upon  him  too  much.  Alone,  he  could  at  least 
show  his  restlessness.  He  went  to  his  own  room. 

The  next  morning,  directly  after  breakfast,  which  at  his 
request  was  earlier  than  usual,  Holden  started  out  upon 
the  errand  he  could  not  accomplish  the  night  before. 
He  might  have  to  wait  for  Mason,  who  was  a  late  riser, 
but  even  that  was  doing  something  for  his  object. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WtiRK.  255 

At  his  own  gate  he  met  Alice  ready  for  walking. 

Both  looked  surprised,  and  she  laughed. 

"Are  you  going  down  town  so  early?"  he  asked. 

"Yes;  I  have  a  great  many  errands  to  do,  and  I  like 
to  take  my  time  about  them;  and  the  sun  is  very  hot  in 
the  middle  of  the  day  with  one's  winter  things  on." 

Jack  forbore  to  ask  her  if  it  was  the  sun  that  had 
"one's  winter  things  on."  He  held  the  gate  for  her  to 
pass  out,  and  as  he  followed,  she  walked  on  beside  him. 

"You  are  going  my  way?"  she  asked  after  taking  a 
few  steps. 

' '  That  depends.  I  am  going  to  see  Mr.  Mason  on 
urgent  business.  I  shall  be  happy  to  have  you  take  the 
Cedar  Street  way,  if  you  will  pardon  my  leaving  you  when 
we  come  to  Mrs.  Edgerly's." 

"Oh,   la!  yes.     That  won't  make  any  difference." 

She  spoke  with  such  evident  sincerity  that  Holden  did 
not  know  whether  to  say  ' '  Thank  you, "  or  not. 

They  walked  on  amiably  together  until  he  reached  his 
destination. 

' '  Very  likely  I  shall  meet  you  down  street,  yet, "  she 
said  as  he  left  her  with  an  apology.  ' '  I  feel  as  if  I 
should. " 

Jack  thought  it  unlikely. 

But  he  had  forgotten  Alice  as  he  laid  his  hand  on  Mrs. 
Edgerly's  door-bell. 


256  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Andrew  had  not  returned  yet,  he  would  probably  come 
by  the  next  train;  Mrs.  Mason  was  going  to  send  to  the 
station  for  him. 

The  next  train  from  the  direction  in  which  he  had 
gone  was  not  due  for  two  hours.  Holden  said  he  would 
call  again. 

He  went  to  the  post-office,  resolved  to  stroll  along  at 
his  leisure  toward  the  station,  and  meet  Andrew  as  he 
came  in. 

But  he  found  strolling  a  difficult  pace  this  morning, 
and  had  more  than  once  to  remind  himself  that  the  train 
would  be  no  swifter  for  his  haste. 

He  met  several  acquaintances,  and  stood  talking  to 
one  and  another.  But  his  inward  fever  prevented  him 
from  remaining  long  anywhere.  He  began  to  question 
with  himself  whether  it  would  not  have  been  better  if  he 
had  not  waited  for  Mason. 

"There,  I  told  you  so  !  "  said  the  voice  of  one  hurry 
ing  on  behind  him,  and  Alice  touched  his  arm. 

The  eighth  wonder  of  the  world  is  the  man  or  woman 
too  magnanimous  ever  to  say  "I  told  you  so." 

She  asked  him  to  go  with  her  into  a  store  near  by, 
and  he  did  it. 

Then  she  said  she  had  a  few  other  errands  to  do. 
Would  he  not  go  to  those  other  places  too  with  her, 
if  he  was  not  busy? 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  257 

Holden  glanced  at  his  watch.  Alas  !  there  was  noth 
ing  he  could  do  for  an  hour. 

At  any  other  time  he  would  have  enjoyed  Alice's 
shopping.  She  held  the  goods  up  to  the  light  to  see 
they  were  not  flimsy,  she  examined  a  specimen  pin  from 
the  papers  to  find  out  if  they  had  points  as  well  as  heads, 
a  precaution  she  assured  Jack  her  experience  made  neces 
sary.  She  peered  into,  and  over,  and  around  everything 
that  she  even  talked  of  buying,  and  then  frequently  de 
cided  she  would  not  take  it  until  to-morrow.  Sometimes, 
on  the  other  hand,  she  made  queer  purchases  on  the 
mere  possibility  of  wanting  the  things. 

"Only  one  more  store,"  she  said  encouragingly  as  she 
heard  her  companion's  impatient  sigh.  "I've  only  one 
more  thing  to  get,  and  that  is  for  Aunt  Delia.  Over 
here. " 

So  saying,  she  led  the  way  into  the  shop  of  Waters, 
the  apothecary. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

H  OLDEN  followed  reluctantly.  He  wanted  to  have 
nothing  to  do  with  this  man  at  present,  for  he  did 
not  believe  he  could  question  him  with  Mrs.  Mason's 
skill,  and  elicit  information  of  Helen's  having  been  there 
and  her  purchase,  without  at  the  same  time  arousing 
any  suspicion  in  him,  especially,  since  the  ground  had 
already  been  gone  over.  If  the  matter  must  become 
public,  then,  he  thought,  would  be  time  enough  to 
question  him.  Or,  in  any  event,  the  other  part  of  the 
matter  came  first,  as  this  was  only  negative  evidence. 

Alice  executed  her  commission  for  Mrs.  Barney,  and 
then  she  lingered  here.  She  took  up  the  cologne  bottles, 
and  admired  their  pretty  shapes  without  ever  thinking 
that  Jack  would  immediately  make  her  a  present  of  one 
of  them. 

Still  she  lingered,  looking  at  this  thing  and  that, 
asking  questions  and  talking  a  little  in  a  desultory  way. 
Secretly,  she  felt  very  much  inclined  to  a  little  chat,  for 
she  had  that  kind  of  acquaintance  with  the  apothecary 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  259 

which  arose  from  her  having  made  small  purchases  of 
him  at  different  times;  but  she  stood  somewhat  in  awe 
of  her  cousin's  opinion  of  such  a  proceeding.  She  re 
membered,  also,  that  he  was  to  meet  some  one  later, 
and  she  must  not  keep  him  too  long.  Mr.  Waters 
however,  was  a  smiling,  talkative  little  man,  and  al 
though  the  clerk,  a  half-grown  boy,  held  out  no  hope 
of  brilliancy,  he  had  the  most  good-natured  face  in  the 
world.  These  things,  and  the  comfortable  coolness  of 
the  store  after  the  hot  sunshine,  were  strong  temptations 
when  combined  with  a  recollection  which  made  her 
twice  open  her  lips  to  address  the  apothecary.  But  she 
closed  them  again  as  she  glanced  at  Holden;  he  stood 
apart  with  an  air  of  abstraction  that  she  feared  might 
express  annoyance. 

At  last  he  started,  and  looked  at  his  watch. 

' '  You  will  excuse  my  leaving  you  at  once  ? "  he  said 
coming  up  to  her;  "I  shall  not  have  more  than  time  to 
reach  the  station  before  Mason  gets  in." 

"Oh,  yes,  indeed,"  she  answered;  adding,  "you'll 
be  home  to  dinner?" 

"I  suppose  so." 

"Good  morning,   then." 

And  she  turned  back  immediately  to  the  counter,  laid 
one  arm  upon  the  frame-work  of  the  glass-case,  and 
looked  eagerly  at  Mr.  Waters. 


260  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"My  little  dog  didn't  die  after  all,"  she  said;  "he 
got  better  as  soon  as  I  showed  him  the  bottle,  knowing 
little  Tyke!" 

"Ah!  indeed?"  said  the  apothecary  smiling  blandly 
to  hide  the  blankness  of  his  recollection.  ' '  So  you 
didn't  have  to  give  him  any  medicines  to  cure  him  ? " 

"Cure  him!"  echoed  the  lady.  "My  goodness, 
sir,  what  do  you  call  curing  him,  I'd  like  to  know,  if  that 
would  do  it  ?  " 

"We  sell  so  much,  and  to  so  many  different  people," 
apologized  the  man,  ' '  we  can't  keep  track  of  everything. 
What  was  it  I  gave  you  ?  I  can't  think  this  minute  of 
anything  good  for  a  dog.  Was  it  a  little  one  ?  "  he  added 
with  great  depth  of  interest  in  his  tones. 

' '  A  little  darling,  and  a  beauty,  too — though  I  be 
lieve  everybody's  dog  is  a  beauty  to  the  one  that  owns  it. 
But  Nelson  is  downright  handsome,  such  curly — " 

Here  she  turned  her  head  with  the  sudden  con 
sciousness  that  she  had  not  heard  the  door  close  be 
hind  Holden. 

He  stood  like  a  statue,  his  hand  withdrawn  from  the 
latch,  his  eyes  fixed  upon  her,  his  ears  drinking  in  her 
words. 

She  stopped  speaking,  and  looked  at  him  in  amaze 
ment. 

"Why,  John,  I  didn't  know  you  were  so  fond  of  dogs. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  261 

But  you  needn't  be  troubled  about  Nelson — you  remem 
ber  him,  I  see,  dear  little  fellow  ! — for  I  didn't  have  to 
give  him  the  strychnine;  there  was  no  danger  of  his  go 
ing  mad,  after  all;  it  was  only  Harriet  Ann  Bonner  that 
scared  me  so  about  it,  and — no,  you  don't  remember 
what  a  storm  I  came  for  it  in  ? "  and  she  turned  to  Mr. 
Waters.  "I  was  determined,  you  see,  John,"  looking 
at  Holden  again,  "that  nobody  but  I  should  have  any 
thing  to  do  with  the  little  thing,  if  it  was  really  necessary 
to  put  an  end  to  him,  and  I  had  heard  that  was  the  way 
the  agent  of  the  '  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Animals  So 
ciety  does  it — by  poison,  you  know;  a  neighbor  told 
me  he  did  so  to  their  dog  when  they  lived  in  town  and 
sent  for  him.  He  uses  Prussic  acid,  but  I'm  afraid  of 
that,  so  I  got  the  other." 

"When  was  this?"  asked  Holden. 

"It  was  just  before  Valentine's  Day.  I  can  remem 
ber  the  date,  because  I  know  I  kept  Mr.  Bolton  waiting 
in  the  snow  while  I  got  something  for  the  children.  He 
drove  me  into  Lowton.  But  won't  you  miss  your  friend, 
John  ? " 

"No — yes — no  matter.  I  am  interested  in  hearing 
about  your  dog." 

But  before  Alice  could  begin  any  account  of  her  pet's 
present  good  health  and  amusing  ways,  he  said  to  the 
apothecary, 


262  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Don't  you  recollect,  Mr.  Waters,  who  the  people 
are  to  whom  you  sell  poison  ? " 

The  man  grew  red  and  then  pale.  He  saw  confi 
dence  and  custom  slipping  away  from  him  in  Holden's 
stern  look,  a  mirror  of  public  opinion,  if  that  were 
roused.  He  exchanged  a  significant  glance  with  his 
clerk. 

' '  There  were  two  of  'em  here  at  the  same  time, " 
explained  that  functionary  coming  to  the  rescue — "two 
ladies,  I  would  say,"  he  corrected — "and  I  suppose  we 
must  have  got  'em  just  a  little  mixed.  One  was  buying 
gum  Arabic,  or  somethin'  or  other  of  that  kind;  it's  easy, 
you  know,  when  there's  lots  of  people  in. " 

' '  I  told  you,  you  know,  at  that  time  the  lady  was 
asking,"  he  added  in  an  aside  to  his  employer,  "  I  wasn't 
quite  certain  'twas  the  one  you  said  bought  it;  but  you 
was  so  sure,  and  she'd  be  likely  to  think  you  had  the 
right  of  it" 

' '  Pshaw  !  That's  of  no  consequence, "  answered  Wa 
ters  confidentially.  "I  know  all  about  her.  I  only 
wish  your  wits  were  as  good  as  your  memory,  Tim. 
She  was  just  asking  things  for  the  sake  of  talking;  she'd 
never  think  of  it  again.  No  trouble  about  that. " 

Holden  listened  with  an  impassive  face.  It  would 
not  have  been  prudent  to  utter  his  thoughts  at  that 
moment. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  263 

Suddenly,  he  turned  to  the  boy. 

' '  Have  you  been  serving  in  this  store  all  winter  ? " 
he  asked. 

"No,    sir,    only  off  'n'  on." 

"Considerably  off,  for  that  matter,"  said  Waters  with 
alacrity. 

Holden  stood  a  moment  in  thought.  Perhaps,  then, 
Knight  had  never  seen  him. 

' '  Did  I  understand  you  to  say  that  you  told  a  lady 
some  other  person  bought  strychnine  of  you  last  winter, 
when  it  was  my  cousin,  here?" 

' '  It  was  only  Mrs.  Mason  that  came  in  one  day — I 
remember  all  about  it  now — and  I'm  sure  I  don't  know 
how  we  got  talking  of  such  things.  She  had  been  ad 
miring  some  of  my  cut-glass  cologne  bottles,  just  as 
that  lady  did  now,  and  took  one  of  them.  We  were 
speaking  of  the  weather  and  what  storms  we  had  had; 
she  spoke  of  the  one  we'd  just  been  having.  I  re 
member,  as  your  cousin  says,  it  was  about  the  mid 
dle  of  the  month,  and  Mrs.  Mason  shivered  and  said, 
wasn't  it  dreadful,  she  hadn't  got  over  the  cold  it  gave 
her;  it  was  just  the  weather  for  suicides,  she  said,  if 
people  were  disposed  to  it  That  set  us  talking  about 
such  things,  and  she  asked  me  if  I  had  ever  had  the 
misfortune  to  sell  anything  dangerous  to  anybody  that 
made  a  wrong  use  of  it?  I  told  her  'no.'  Then  I 


264  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

laughed,  and  said  a  lady  came  in  the  other  day,  after 
the  storm  had  begun,  and  wanted  some  strychnine  to 
give  her  dog.  She  was  quite  interested  for  the  mo 
ment,  and  wondered  if  she  knew  anybody  who  had 
a  sick  dog,  and  asked  me  how  the  lady  looked.  My 
boy  says  I  got  her  mixed  up  with  somebody  else  that 
was  in  at  the  same  time;  but,  you  see,  Mrs.  Mason 
didn't  really  care  at  all.  I  know  she  forgot  all  about 
it  the  next  minute,  for  she  branched  off  into  something 
quite  different,  and  went  away  without  another  word 
about  it. " 

"Are  you  quite  sure  it  was  Mrs.    Mason?" 

"Sure.     Wasn't  it,  Tim?" 

"Oh,  you  want  my  memory  this  time,  do  you?" 
responded  the  boy  with  a  grin.  "Yes,  'twas  Mrs. 
Mason,"  he  added  to  Holden. 

"There's  one  thing  sure,  anyway,"  interrupted  Alice — 
"you'll  miss  your  friend." 

Holden  made  no  answer;  he  stood  a  moment  in 
thought,  looked  at  his  watch  again,  asked  the  apothe 
cary  for  paper  and  envelope,  penciled  a  line  hastily, 
addressed  it,  and  going  to  the  door  with  it  in  his  hand, 
turned  to  say  to  Alice, 

"Tell  Mrs.  Barney,  please,  not  to  wait  dinner  for 
me.  I  am  quite  sure  I  cannot  be  there;  and  don't  be 
anxious  if  you  shouldn't  see  me  to-night." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  265 

"Why — "  she  began,   but  he  had  gone. 

"Quite  his  share  of  curiosity,  for  a  man,  hasn't  he?" 
remarked  the  apothecary  with  a  sigh  of  relief  as  the  door 
closed.  He  was  not  as  grateful  for  having  got  off  so 
easily  as  he  was  annoyed  at  having  been  found  in  the 
wrong. 

"For  a  man!"  echoed  Alice  indignantly.  "I  never 
saw  a  man  yet  that  wasn't  twice  as  anxious  to  find  out 
every  living  thing  that  ever  went  on  as  any  woman  could 
be.  Talk  of  women's  gossip,  indeed;  it  isn't  a  circum 
stance  compared  with  men's!  Good  morning,  sir." 

Before  the  astonished  little  apothecary  had  recovered 
his  breath,  she  was  half  way  across  the  street,  making 
for  home  at  a  speed  increased  by  her  wrath  at  this  mas 
culine  slight  to  her  sex,  and  her  amazement  at  Holden's 
behavior.  She  was  about  to  talk  everything  over  with 
Aunt  Delia. 

Jack,  meanwhile,  was  on  his  way  to  the  train,  not  to 
meet  Andrew  now,  but  to  go  himself  to  town. 

He  wondered  why  he  had  not  thought  before  of  his 
present  plan  in  regard  to  Mason.  He  felt  that  he  could 
not  stay  here  another  hour  when  he  did  not  know  what 
might  be  happening  to  Helen.  He  asked  himself,  as 
he  started,  why  he  was  so  relieved  and  at  ease?  There 
was  no  reason  for  it  so  far  as  Helen's  danger  of  arrest 
was  concerned.  This  evidence  he  had  just  gained  was 


266  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

purely  negative.  She  had  not  bought  the  strychnine 
where  Mrs.  Mason  said;  it  did  not  legally  follow  that 
she  had  not  bought  it  at  all. 

One  thing  was  proved  conclusively,  however,  by  the 
story  he  had  heard  this  morning — that  there  was  a  spice 
of  willfulness  in  Kitty  Mason's  hallucination;  for  she  had 
not  been  willing  to  accept  the  clerk's  suggestion  of 
a  mistake  as  to  the  purchaser.  She  had  not  even  men 
tioned  the  possibility  to  Holden.  Perhaps  it  was  this 
which  made  him  feel  as  if  all  the  rest  of  the  evidence 
were  equally  easy  to  break  down. 

Yet  he  knew  he  was  wrong  here;  the  matter  had  been 
already  tested. 

But  interrupting  all  his  thoughts  and  plans,  more  clear 
to  his  mind  and  persistent  than  any  of  these,  was  the 
picture  of  what  he  had  seen  the  day  before:  of  Helen 
with  her  noble  face  and  look  of  grave  unconsciousness, 
and  at  her  side  the  evil  genius  of  her  circumstances  who 
could  cloud  all  her  days.  He  meant  to  do  it.  Holden 
had  read  this  determination  in  the  grin  of  triumphant 
malice  turned  upon  him  as  the  two  passed  by. 

Was  it  done  already? 

He  moved  restlessly  in  his  seat.  How  slow  this  ex 
press  train  seemed. 

"There  he  is  now,"  cried  a  voice  from  the  opposite 
aisle.  "'Talk  of  an  angel,'  etc." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK'.  267 

"Or  the  other  way,  if  you  ladies  like  to  put  it  so," 
reached  him  in  tones  that  could  be  no  other  than 
Dewey's. 

There  came  a  subdued  giggle. 

He  looked  in  its  direction.  He  was  in  the  same  car 
with  Bertha,  Miss  Grierson,  and  Dewey.  Worse  than 
this,  they  recognized  him;  still  worse,  they  saw  that  he 
recognized  them. 

Bertha  beckoned  vigorously,  but  he  had  already  turned 
away  with  a  bow. 

In  another  moment  Mr.   Dewey  was  at  his  elbow. 

"They  want  you  over  there,"  he  said.  "I  can  offer 
you  a  seat." 

Holden  could  find  no  excuse  for  refusing. 

But  it  was  Bertha  who  offered  him  a  place.  She  had 
slipped  from  Jenny's  side  into  the  seat  Dewey  had  been 
occupying,  facing  them,  and  now  looking  up  said, 

"Sit  here,   Mr.   Holden." 

She  paid  no  heed  to  Dewey's  blank  look,  nor  the 
angry  glare  that  followed  it  as  he  subsided  into  the  va 
cant  place  beside  Jenny.  Holden  saw  no  way  of  escape 
until  the  train  stopped.  He  resolved  to  bolt  then. 

' '  Are  you  going  to  the  matinee  ?  "  asked  Bertha. 

"I  did  not  know  there  was  one." 

"Come  now,  Holden,"  grunted  Dewey,  "that's  just 
a  little  steep.  There  are  as  many  as  twenty  persons  from 


268  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Lowton  in  this  very  car  going  to  town  for  the  express 
purpose,  and  I  don't  know  how  many  in  the  train.  Don't 
you  think  you  will  change  your  mind  about  it  when  you 
get  to  town  ?  Such  things  have  happened  to  people. " 

Bertha  laughed  teasingly,  and  Jack  would  have  been 
angry  if  he  had  considered  the  young  man  of  sufficient 
consequence  to  regard  his  insolence. 

"Won't  you  change  your  mind?"  echoed  Bertha. 

"Impossible,  Miss  Edgerly.  I  have  a  pressing  en 
gagement.  Has  Mason  come  home  ?  " 

' '  Yes,  we  passed  him  on  the  driveway  as  we  were 
starting. " 

' '  He  likes  that  answer, "  thought  Jenny. 

Dewey  began  to  talk  about  the  matinee,  German  and 
Italian  music,  the  ideal  and  realistic  schools,  and  some 
of  their  disciples,  liberally  sandwiching  in  his  own  opin 
ions  and  spicing  highly  with  criticism.  Holden  listened 
to  him"  only  when  directly  addressed,  and,  notwithstand 
ing  Dewey 's  vigorous  efforts,  would  not  be  drawn  into 
an  argument.  In  vain  the  other  grew  eloquent,  Holden 
had  only  monosyllables,  when  he  answered  him  at  all. 

"Why  don't  you  compose  an  opera  yourself,  Mr. 
Dewey?"  asked  Jenny  at  last  with  her  most  demure 
expression.  "Then  we  all  shall  see  at  once  everything 
you  mean,  and  the  result  of  your  methods." 

"To  tell   the  truth,   Miss  Grierson,    I   have  indulged 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  269 

myself  in  publishing  a  song  or  two,  but  you  will  never 
get  the  other  thing  from  me.  It  is  too  laborious,  and 
I'm  not  fond  enough  of  work.  I  leave  that  for  the  'digs' 
who  have  the  divine  industry  popularly  called  'afflatus.' 
The  real  difference  between  man  and  man  is  ambition, 
rather  than  ability.  For  example,  now  no  doubt  you 
or  Miss  Bertha  could  paint  quite  as  skillfully  as  that 
friend  of  yours,  Miss  Bell,  if  you  had  as  much  ambition, 
and  found  it  necessary  to  work." 

Holden's  hand  took  a  sudden,  firm  grasp  upon  the 
arm  of  the  seat.  But  when  a  moment  after  he  per 
ceived  Jenny  smiling  broadly  at  this  statement,  he 
smiled,  too. 

"Thank  you  for  your  good  opinion,  Mr.  Dewey," 
she  answered  when  Holden's  sympathy  had  turned  her 
smile  into  a  laugh.  "  Mr.  Knight  is  a  very  fair  draughts 
man,  perhaps  you  include  him  also  ? " 

"Certainly;  although  he  would  have  the  masculine 
stamp  of  work." 

' '  The  '  stamp  out '  you  mean  ?  " 

"Be  quiet,  Jenny.  What  nonsense  you  always  talk 
when  you  get — " 

"'On  the  rampage/"  Bertha.  "I  wouldn't  be  too 
elegant  to  say  it,  for  that  is  exactly  what  you  mean. 
It's  true  I  feel  so  already,  and  when  the  inspiration  of 
the  music  comes,  I  don't  know  what  will  happen." 


270  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  Has  Mr.  Knight  been  down  this  week  ? "  asked 
Dewey  with  evident  disapprobation  of  her  mirth. 

' '  No — yes — I  believe  so.  Didn't  Aunt  Kitty  say  he 
called  the  other  day,  Bertha  ?  "  and  she  turned  a  guile 
less  countenance,  flushed  with  her  laughter,  upon  her 
companion. 

"I  saw  him  last  week  when  I  was  in  Boston,"  he 
went  on  after  Bertha's  answer.  "He  was  walking  with 
Miss  Helen,  and  seemed  to  be  in  high  feather.  They 
both  had  a  very  lover-like  air." 

"Kit  says  she  is  sure  something  will  come  of  that," 
remarked  Bertha. 

H  olden  happened  to  be  looking  at  her  opposite 
neighbor  as  she  said  this.  He  saw  that  the  color  had 
faded  entirely  from  her  face,  and  that  her  eyes  were 
dilated. 

In  an  instant  she  had  recovered  her  self-control. 

"I  don't  think  that,"  she  said  lightly;  "it  is  not 
like  either  of  them,  certainly  Helen." 

"At  least,  no  one  here  knows  yet,"  he  thought. 
"But  can  Miss  Grierson  care  for  a  rumor  like  this?" 

So  the  conversation  rambled  on.  Holden  did  not 
try  to  follow  it,  and  after  a  time  the  others,  rinding 
him  in  so  unsocial  a  mood,  left  him  to  himself. 

,  In    imagination    he    was    holding    conversations    with 
Knight,    or  skillfully  cross-questioning   that  apothecary. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  271 

out  of  whom  it  did  not  seem  possible  any  satisfaction 
could  be  had,  and  here  it  was  that  he  hoped  so  much 
from  the  aid  of  Mason's  keenness. 

Occasionally,  a  few  words  of  the  talk  around  him 
found  lodgment  in  his  brain,  generally  a  brief  one, 
for  his  own  fancies,  taking  up  their  swift  march  again, 
soon  displaced  them. 

But  at  last  one  sentence  came  to  him  in  this  way, 
a  remark  of  Dewey's,  in  itself  trivial,  and  having  not 
the  slightest  apparent  connection  with  anything  but  the 
proposition  of  Bertha's  which  it  was  meant  to  answer. 
Yet  the  truth  in  it  flashed  an  illumination  to  Holden, 
and  showed  him  the  possible  cause  of  his  failure. 

He  started  up. 

"What's  the  matter?"  cried  Jenny. 

He  looked  at  her  a  moment,  as  if  not  comprehend 
ing  what  she  had  said.  Then,  instead  of  reseating  him 
self,  as  he  seemed  at  first  about  to  do,  he  answered, 

"We  are  there!  We  have  arrived,  Miss  Grierson," 
he  added  deliberately,  smiling  as  the  train  began  to 
slacken  its  speed  and  cross  the  many  tracks  on  its  way 
into  the  station. 

"Oh,  we  did  not  notice,"  said  Jenny;  "it's  only  the 
abstracted  people  who  see  and  hear  everything. " 

Holden  laughed,  for  he  had  really  started  up  from 
the  impetus  of  his  sudden  thought,  and  fortune  had 


272  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

been  kind  enough  to  favor  him  with  an  excellent  reason 
for  not  sitting  down  again  in  some  confusion. 

He  helped  Bertha  from  the  train;  and  then,  with 
a  word  of  apology  for  his  haste,  raised  his  hat  and 
disappeared  directly. 

In  two  hours,  however,  he  was  again  at  the  station, 
eagerly  watching  the  passengers  that  alighted  from  the 
Lowton  train.  He  had  almost  satisfied  himself  that  the 
blow  had  not  fallen  yet;  but  it  must  come  very  soon, 
unless  he  could  ward  it  off. 

Business  men  walked  by  with  hurried  tread,  ladies 
richly  clad,  attended  by  gentlemen,  or  looking  out  for 
carriage  or  horse-car  sailed  past;  there  were  women  with 
bundles  and  shabbily  dressed,  a  long  procession  in  all. 
But  it  was  not  long  enough  for  Holden,  since  it  ended 
without  bringing  to  him  the  man  he  was  hoping  to 
see. 

He  watched  and  waited,  until  he  was  sure  they  were 
not  merely  being  separated  by  the  jostle  of  the  crowd. 

' '  No,  he  has  not  come, "  he  said.  ' '  Could  she  have 
hindered  him  ?  I  am  sure  not,  unless — " 

You  are  quite  right,  Jack  Holden,  to  turn  away  impa 
tiently,  angrily — you  are  quite  right,  to  go  at  once,  alone, 
to  your  self-appointed  task,  since  you  are  not  to  have 
the  help  you  counted  upon,  and  there  is  not,  indeed,  a 
moment  to  be  lost;  but,  for  once  at  least,  you  are  doing 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  273 

Kitty  Mason  injustice  in  supposing  she  has  kept  back 
your  note  to  her  husband  until  too  late.  She  really  knows 
no  more  about  it  at  this  moment  than  he  does.  Andrew's 
non-appearance  where  he  is  so  earnestly  wanted  has  a 
much  simpler  explanation  than  this. 

If  you  could  have  followed  the  course  of  that  little, 
bright-eyed  boy  to  whom  you  intrusted  your  precious 
note  as  you  came  out  of  the  apothecary's  shop  this  morn 
ing  and  hailed  a  passing  hack,  you  would  have  seen  it  to 
be  much  more  eel-like  than  arrowy.  You  saw  him  start 
off  in  the  right  direction,  to  be  sure,  for  he  was  a  child  of 
good  intentions;  but  he  had  fallen  into  a  habit  of  using 
them  as  paving  stones  for  certain  underground  quarters. 
When  he  promised  to  deliver  the  letter  immediately,  he 
meant  to  do  it;  but  he  met  a  companion,  he  stopped  to 
tell  him  of  his  good  luck,  and  your  quarter  found  its  way 
out  of  the  boy's  pocket  a  long  time  before  your  letter 
did;  for  it  was  not  until  after  nine  o'clock  that  evening 
that  he  laid  an  imperative  hand  on  Mrs.  Edgerly's  front 
door  bell. 

Andrew,  who  was  crossing  the  hall  at  the  moment, 
opened  the  door. 

A  little,  panting  urchin  thrust  a  crumpled  paper  into 
his  hand  with  the  brief  statement  that  it  belonged  here, 
and  dodging  back,  scampered  down  the  steps,  and  was 
out  of  sight  in  an  instant. 


274  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Andrew  held  the  note  under  the  hall  gas,  and  read 
with  some  difficulty,  for  the  never  too  legible  penciling 
was  not  made  plainer  by  its  many  creases: 

"  Meet  me  in  the  station  in  Boston  by  the  noon  train 
from  Lowton.  Don't  fail  to  come.  I  have  no  time  to 
explain  until  I  see  you.  Your  wife  knows  what  it  is 
about. 

"Yours, 

"J.     R.     HOLDEN." 

"Kitty!"  he  called  as  Mrs.  Mason  sat  listening  to 
Bertha's  account  of  the  afternoon. 

She  came  to  him  with  a  smile,  and  eyes  that  watched 
furtively  to  learn  what  his  mood  might  be. 

He  put  the  paper  into  her  hand. 

She  read  it,  and  looked  up  at  him  questioningly. 

' '  Explain  what  it  is  that  he  says  you  know, "  Andrew 
demanded. 

' '  But  how  did  you  get  it  at  this  time  of  night  ?  Why 
didn't  it  come  in  season?" 

"A  small  boy  brought  it,  which  probably  answers 
both  questions." 

"I  am  very  sorry  you  could  not  go  to  Mr.  Holden 
when  he  wanted  you." 

"What  is  it  about,   Kitty?" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  275 

"Why — I  suppose  it  must  be  something  about  Helen. 
I  confided  to  him  what  she  attempted  to  do  to  me." 

"What  you  willfully  fancy  she  attempted  to  do,  Kitty." 

"What  I  firmly  believe — yes,  know,  she  did  attempt; 
and  so  would  you  if  you  would  listen." 

"I  don't  think  it  is  best  for  you  to  dwell  upon  it; 
this  only  makes  you  more  obstinate." 

Kitty  was  silent. 

"But  why  is  Holden  in  such  a  hurry  now?  What 
is  the  special  need  for  it  ?  Is  there  anything  new  about 
Helen  ? " 

She   hesitated. 

"I  have  heard  nothing  new,"  she  said  at  last  "I 
have  not  seen  Mr.  Holden  since  the  day  before  yesterday 
morning  when  you  went  to  the  'Oaks'  with  the  girls. 
He  was  terribly  anxious  then  to  clear  up  the  matter  in 
stantly.  He  finds  it  more  serious  than  he  supposed." 

"There  is  no  telling  what  harm  this  boy's  behavior 
about  the  note  may  have  done,"  said  Mason,  "though  I 
can't  see  anything  imminent.  But  Holden  is  not  the 
man  to  write  in  this  way  for  nothing." 

"He  is  very  much  excited,"  suggested  Kitty.  "And 
so  was  I  at  first.  Only  think  of  what  I  have  endured, 
Andrew. " 

"I  grant  it  is  a  dreadful  nightmare." 

"'Nightmare!'     O  Andrew,  why  won't  you  see?" 


276  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Then  you  cannot  explain  why  Holden  has  written 
in  this  way?" 

There  was  a  long  pause.  Twice  Kitty  from  under  her 
downcast  lids  glanced  stealthily  at  her  husband,  to  see 
if  it  would  be  safe  to  attempt  a  diversion.  His  eyes 
never  wavered  from  their  stern  fixedness  upon  her 
face. 

"I  suppose,"  she  answered  looking  at  him  firmly,  "he 
is  afraid  the  thing  will  come  out,  as,  of  course,  it  must 
do  sometime." 

"Did  you  tell  him  it  was  your  intention  to  bring  it 
out  ? " 

"I   told   him — I  had  nothing  to  do  with  it" 

"Who  has,    then?" 

Kitty's  head  drooped;  she  leaned  her  hands  heavily 
upon  her  husband's  arm. 

"You  do  not  care  for-  me,"  she  sighed;  "you  will 
not  believe  that  I  have  been  really  in  danger.  Did  I 
not  know  you  would  not  if  I  told  you  then  ?  You  have 
not  one  thought  for  what  I  have  endured.  This  is  not 
like  what  you  used  to  be.  Take  me  away  again  to  the 
old,  quiet  home  where  you  were  always  so  kind,  and 
sorry  for  me  if  only  my  head  ached. " 

"I  really  think  it  would  be  better  for  you  if  I  did, 
Kitty." 

She  was  breathless  a  moment,   weighing  the   quality 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  277 

of  his  tone.  Did  it  express  conviction  only,  or  deter 
mination  with  it  ? 

' '  You  would  not  like  that  now;  you  would  find  it  dull 
with  only  me." 

' '  You  recollect  we  had  a  few  neighbors.  For  myself, 
I  should  like  it  better  than  here.  I  dread  to  see  you 
grow  into  a  society  woman.  Don't  mistake  me;  the 
more  persons  there  are  who  love  you  and  enjoy  your 
bright  ways,  the  better  it  pleases  me,  since  you  are 
pleased;  but  I  think  you  are  coming  to  build  a  little  upon 
people's  admiration — to  be  disappointed  if  you  do  not 
get  quite  as  much  as  you  expect,  and  to  put  forth 
efforts  to  win  it.  Now,  Kitty,  that's  an  investment  that 
won't  pay;  you  will  always  put  into  it  more  than  you 
will  get  out.  It  swallows  up  self-respect  in  the  first 
place,  and  goes  on  crying,  '  Give,  give  ! ' ' 

' '  Do  you  think  all  that  of  me  ?  "  asked  his  wife.  But 
her  sigh  was  one  of  relief.  She  preferred  a  homily  to 
some  questions. 

The  relief  was  premature;  for  Andrew  turning  up  to 
ward  his  the  face  that  had  fallen  upon  his  shoulder,  asked, 

"Was  it  for  this — belief  of  yours  about  Helen  that 
Knight  has  been  here  ?  Is  it  he  whom  you  have  made 
your  confidant  in  the  matter?" 

' '  I  was  compelled  to  have  some  one.  I  was  in  danger 
of  my  life." 


278  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"No;   I  will  not  admit  that." 

"You   will   admit   that   I   firmly  believe  so,    then?" 

Mason  was  silent.  Many  things  hitherto  unexplained 
were  growing  clear  to  him. 

He  withdrew  his  support,   and  stood  facing  her. 

"So  you  brought  a  spy  into — our  aunt's  house?"  he 
said. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

WHEN  Holden  reached  the  apothecary's,  he  was 
nerved  to  the  coolness  of  desperation.  His  faith 
in  Helen  helped  him,  too;  he  felt  that  he  was  at  work 
upon  a  problem  capable  of  a  satisfactory  solution;  he 
had  only  to  find  it.  Only  !  How  he  wished  that 
Mason  were  there,  to  put,  at  need,  one  of  those  keen 
queries  of  his  which  always  threw  so  much  light  upon 
anything  they  touched. 

The  apothecary  at  once  recognized  him  as  the  man 
who  had  bought  medicine  in  that  strange  way  a  day  or 
two  before.  Having  secretly  resented  this,  he  met  him 
with  a  suspicion  which  would  require  careful  manage 
ment,  else  it  would  turn  into  antagonism. 

He  was  alone  in  the  shop. 

Holden  said  good  afternoon,  cordially,  remarked  that 
he  had  heard  the  quality  of  his  medicines  highly  recom 
mended  by  Mr.  ,  the  famous  chemist,  and  begged 

permission  to  ask  him  a  few  questions. 


280  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

The  compliment  greatly  pleased  the  apothecary.  But 
he  looked  at  Holden  with  suspicious  curiosity  as  the 
latter  made  his  request. 

"Is  it  a  new  dodge  in  advertising?"  he  thought.  "He 
hasn't  just  the  cut  of  an  agent,  but  you  can't  spot  those 
fellows,  after  all;  they  are  a  gentlemanly  set,  some  of 
them.  He'll  tell  me  fast  enough  though,  if  I  let  him 
have  a  chance." 

' '  Certainly,   sir.     Won't  you  sit  down  ?  " 

"Thank  you,"  said  Holden  complying.  He  fitted 
his  arms  comfortably  on  the  arms  of  his  chair,  looked 
the  expectant  apothecary  full  in  the  face,  and  asked, 

' '  How  fresh  were  those  medicines  you  gave  me  the 
other  day  ?  They  were  of  excellent  quality, "  he  has 
tened  to  add  as  the  other's  brows  contracted;  "it  is 
not  for  that  I  ask." 

He  was  following  out  the  hint  Dewey  had  uncon 
sciously  given  him  that  same  morning  when  Bertha 
proposed  going  for  more  of  some  stuff  she  had  bought 
the  week  previous.  ' '  In  those  large  stores  they  never 
have  the  same  piece  two  days  running,"  he  said;  "and 
one  lot  is  never  like  another,  if  you  come  to  the  mat 
ter  of  matching  it." 

But  the  apothecary  not  perceiving  this  excellent  rea 
son  for  the  question,  stood  eying  Holden  with  severity 

' '  May  I  know  for  what,   then  ?  "  he  asked. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  281 

After  a  slight  hesitation,  Jack  answered, 

"A  foreign  ingredient  has  been  found  in  something 
that  was  bought  here  some  time  ago,  which  was  not 
in  any  of  the  drugs  I  got  of  you  the  day  before  yes 
terday,  although  the  parts  are  the  same." 

' '  Did  you  buy  it  ?  " 

"No." 

"Who  did?" 

' '  It  was  probably  bought  here  early  in  the  winter, 
either  then  or  before  that  time,  not  later." 

"There  has  been  no  foreign  ingredient  put  by  me 
into  anything  ordered  at  this  store,  sir." 

' '  Not  you,  but  the  clerk  probably. " 

"I  have  no  clerk." 

' '  I  mean  quite  by  accident,  you  understand. " 

"Accidents  are  culpable  in  medicines,  sir." 

' '  But  not  in  the  same  way  as  if  the  thing  were  done 
with  intention." 

Holden  threw  off  the  careless  manner  he  had  assumed, 
and  rising,  came  up  to  the  apothecary  with  the  earnest 
ness  of  his  purpose  in  his  face. 

"This  thing  was  done  by  you  accidentally,"  he  went 
on,  "or  by  the  purchaser  with  deliberate  intention.  To 
day  it  is  a  private  question,  to-morrow  it  will  very  likely 
be  a  public  one." 

The  other  returned  his  steady  gaze  haughtily. 


282  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  That  will  not  injure  me, "  he  said.  "  I  am  not  to  be 
threatened.  Are  you  a  detective?"  he  added. 

"Oh,  no,  I  have  no  official  capacity.  I  am  here 
only  as  an  individual.  I  don't  want  to  threaten  you, 
or  anybody  else,  but  the  case  is  very  serious  indeed." 

' '  Sorry,    sir, "   he   answered   coolly. 

Some  one  came  in  at  this  moment,  and  Holden  was 
obliged  to  wait  while  a  prescription  was  being  put  up. 
It  seemed  to  him  the  apothecary  did  not  hurry  himself 
at  all. 

But  the  man,  too,  had  been  thinking  the  matter  over, 
perceiving  that  his  questioner  must  have  a  great  deal  at 
stake,  and  feeling  a  little  self-reproach  at  this  way  of 
treating  him.  When  the  customer  had  gone,  there 
fore,  he  leaned  over  the  counter  and  asked  Holden, 

' '  What  was  the  '  foreign  ingredient '  ?  " 

Jack  looked  up  surprised  at  the  interest  in  the  tones, 
and  answered, 

' '  Strychnine. " 

He  would  not  have  told  this  five  minutes  before. 

A  smile  of  contemptuous  pity  curled  the  hearer's 
lips. 

"Quite  impossible  that  should  be  a  mistake  made 
here,"  he  commented. 

"It  seems  so;  yet  it  must  have  been,  for  the  bottle 
containing  the  strychnine  was  certainly  got  here." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  283 

"Strychnine  and  all?"  asked  the  other. 

"Yes,"  answered  Holden  firmly.  His  face  was  so 
white  as  he  spoke  that  in  looking  at  him  the  scorn  went 
out  of  the  apothecary's  expression. 

"Such  things  are  very  hard  to  believe,"  he  said  with 
a  real  compassion. 

Holden  straightened  himself  suddenly.  He  was  about 
to  speak,  but  closed  his  lips  again. 

"You  say  you  have  no  clerk?"  he  asked  finally. 

"No,  sir.  I  have  a  boy  who  comes  in  for  a  time 
every  morning  to  keep  things  in  order  about  the  store 
and  do  my  errands.  But  he  never  touches  the  drugs." 

Holden  sighed. 

He  looked  at  a  paper  he  held  in  his  hand. 

' '  Have  you  any  objection  to  my  asking  you  a  few 
questions  ? "  he  repeated. 

' '  None  at  all.  As  many  as  you  like.  Be  assured,  I 
sympathize  with  you,  sir." 

' '  Thank  you. " 

He  was  going  on  to  question  when  another  customer 
came.  But  the  apothecary  was  not  long  in  serving 
him. 

"Will  you  tell  me  if  all  the  medicines  on  this  list 
have  been  bought  lately  ? "  began  Holden. 

"The  list  I  gave  you  the  other  day?  Certainly. 
Name  the  first  one." 


284  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

He  took  up  an  account-book  as  he  spoke,  and  as 
Holden  began  the  list,  looked  down  its  pages-  with  a 
rapid  glance. 

Presently,  he  checked  off  the  first.  He  had  bought 
a  supply  of  this  medicine  in  February.  Holden  noted 
it  down.  The  next  date  came  in  December,  but  it 
was  after  Christmas,  again  too  late.  The  third  ingre 
dient  was  a  January  purchase,  and  another  date  was  a 
fortnight  ago.  The  last  one  on  the  list  he  had  had  in 
the  shop  for  some  time. 

"It  must  be  that,"  said  Holden. 

A  light  came  into  his  eyes  as  he  spoke. 

"You  forget,"  said  the  other.  "I  gave  you  that, 
too,  and  it  was  examined  with  the  rest.  Did  you  find 
anything  wrong  there?" 

Holden  had  forgotten  this. 

"True,"  he  said. 

He  fell  thinking,  his  head  bowed,  while  the  apothe 
cary  watched  him,  himself  thinking  also.  But  the  cog 
itations  of  both  were  apparently  without  result. 

"Who  bought  the  medicine?"  asked  the  latter  a 
second  time. 

"One  who  could  not  by  any  possibility  have  mixed 
poison  with  it,"  Jack  answered. 

' '  You  prefer  not  to  give  the  name  ?     That  is  natural. " 

As  Jack   made   no   reply,    the  apothecary  took  up  a 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  285 

large  note-book,  and  stood  with  it  open  in  his  hand, 
considering. 

' '  I  can't  remember  anybody  lately  whom  I  put  up 
this  prescription  for,"  he  said  at  last,  "except  Miss  Bell. 
She  can't  be  in  any  trouble  about  this,  can  she?  I  re 
member  she  came  and  got  it  herself  one  day.  She  is 
quite  a  near  neighbor  of  ours.  We  went  to  the  Gram 
mar  School  together  when  we  were  children,  and  we've 
always  kept  up  a  pleasant  speaking  acquaintance.  Do 
you  know  her  ? " 

He  put  the  last  question  incisively. 

"I  understood  you  that  this  prescription  was  not  a 
very  uncommon  remedy  for  a  cough,"  returned  Holden. 
"You  trust  to  your  memory  a  good  deal  when  you  say 
you  have  put  it  up  for  only  one  person;  but  I  shall  cer 
tainly  not  try  to  shake  your  belief.  What  I  want  to 
learn,"  he  went  on  laying  his  hand  firmly  on  the  coun 
ter,  and  looking  at  his  questioner,  ' '  is  whether  you  have 
not  any  duplicates  of  these  medicines,  in  bottles  nearly 
empty,  perhaps,  and  forgotten,  from  which  this  prescrip 
tion  might  have  been  taken.  Will  you  have  the  kind 
ness  to  look  ? " 

"I  shall  not  find  anything." 

He  made  a  thorough  search,  however,  and  at  last  came 
back  to  Holden  with  a  rather  small  bottle  in  his  hand. 

"This  is  the  only  duplicate  I  have  of  anything  in  the 


286  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

prescription.  I  remember  about  it  now.  The  last  time 
I  bought  this  syrup,  I  had  a  little  more  than  would  fill 
my  other  bottle,  and  what  was  left  over  went  into  this 
one.  But  it  disappeared,  and  I  forgot  about  it.  I  found 
it  just  now  in  an  out-of-the-way  corner.  But  I'm  sure  it 
has  never  been  used.  Look  at  the  dust  on  it" 

He  set  it  down  on  the  counter,  feeling  that  he  had 
now  done  his  whole  duty  by  the  stranger,  who  would  be 
wiser  to  cease  questioning  him  and  take  his  leave.  The 
day  was  warm,  and  he  was  heated  by  his  search  along 
the  upper  shelves  of  his  shop,  and  annoyed  at  the  re 
fusal  to  trust  him  with  the  name  of  the  purchaser  whom 
he  still  half  suspected  to  be  Miss  Bell.  An  injudicious 
move  on  the  part  of  the  other  would  rouse  the  threat 
ened  antagonism. 

Holden  took  up  the  bottle  and  examined  it  leisurely, 
waiting  for  the  other  to  grow  cool  again.  After  the 
apothecary  had  shown  by  some  pleasant  remark  that  he 
had  recovered  his  equanimity,  Holden  asked, 

"How  large  a  proportion  of  this  syrup  is  in  the  pre 
scription  ? " 

"I  will  tell  you  exactly.     It  is  quite  large." 

He  looked  it  out,  and  told  him. 

Holden  took  up  the  bottle  again. 

"More  than  that  quantity  has  been  taken  from  here," 
he  said. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  287 

"I  tell  you  it  was  never  fuller  than  that,"  answered 
the  other. 

"And  you  have  no  clerk,  you  say?" 

Everything  is  done  by  myself,  and  under  my  own 
eye.  When  I  have  a  fresh  supply  of  drugs,  my  shop-boy 
washes  the  empty  bottles  and  brings  them  to  me  to  be 
filled.  He  puts  away  things  not  needed,  too,  which,  I 
suppose,  accounts  for  the  disappearance  of  this  bottle, 
and  I  didn't  miss  it,  having  plenty  more  of  the  syrup." 

Holden  set  it  down. 

"You  may  have  used  a  little  of  it,  however,  before  it 
was  put  away,"  he  said,  "and  I  must  not  let — "  he  in 
terrupted  himself.  "I  will  take  a  little  of  this,"  he 
added. 

The  man  looked  at  him,  this  time  in  undeniable  an 
ger.  "Won't  you  take  a  sample  of  everything  in  the 
store?"  he  cried.  "No;  I  will  test  this  for  you  myself, 
sir.  Here  is  the  answer  to  your  insulting  questions  about 
my  bungling,  my  putting  strychnine  into  the  medicine  I 
sell.  Your  conduct  has  passed  the  bounds  of  endurance. 
I  fare  like  the  people  I  sell  to.  I'm  ready  to  drink  the 
whole  of  this  harmless  stuff.  Look  here." 

"For  Heaven's  sake,  don't!"  cried  Holden  springing 
forward  to  catch  the  arm  of  the  speaker. 

But  the  counter  was  between  them,  he  could  not  reach 
him,  and  his  eager  cry  of  warning  only  served  to  make 


288  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

the  apothecary's  smile  the  more  contemptuous  as  lie 
raised  the  bottle  to  his  lips,  and  took  a  swallow  from  it. 

But  instead  of  setting  it  down  on  the  counter  again, 
he  held  it  still  before  him,  and  re-examined  the  label 
carefully. 

"This  has  a  strange  taste,"  he  said,  "  it  is  very  bitter. 
It  ought  not  to  be  so." 

"Try  the  bottle  from  which  you  gave  it  to  me,"  said 
Holden. 

The  apothecary  brought  it  to  him. 

"Taste  this  for  me,  please,"  he  said;  "you  have  had 
it  examined,  remember,  and  the  bitterness  in  my  mouth 
would  overpower  anything  else." 

"This  is  sweet,"  said  Holden  complying. 

"Only  that?     Not  at  all  bitter?" 

"Not  at  all." 

"It  should  be  sweetish  merely,"  said  the  apothecary. 
"I'm  afraid  there  is  some  mistake;  but  it  can't  possibly 
be  strychnine,  though  it  tastes  a  good  deal  as  I  have  sup 
posed  that  did." 

"It  is  strychnine,"  cried  Holden  pale  with  dread. 
"Tell  me  where  to  find  a  doctor." 

"  Nonsense, "  said  the  other.  But  his  face  was  ashen, 
and  his  eyes  had  a  strained  look.  He  brought  a  small 
phial,  and  pouring  some  of  the  bitter  medicine  into  it, 
gave  it  to  Holden. 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  289 

"Have  that  examined,"  he  said,  "it  will  not  help  you, 
but  you  will  be  satisfied." 

"I  must  call  the  doctor,"  was  Jack's  only  answer  mov 
ing  hastily  toward  the  door.  "Where  shall  I  go?" 

"You  are  very  foolish,  but  if  you  insist,   I — " 

Suddenly  he  stopped.  His  arm  twitched  convulsively, 
and  such  a  look  of  horror  and  deadly  illness  came  into 
his  face  that  Holden  sprang  toward  him.  He  pointed 
and  tried  to  speak,  but,  either  through  the  intensity  or 
the  violence  of  his  seizure,  the  words  refused  to  come. 
His  finger  still  pointed  persistently  across  the  street,  how 
ever,  and  at  last  he  articulated, 

"There!     Call  him." 

Holden,  following  the  direction  with  his  eyes,  saw  a 
man  coming  down  a  flight  of  steps.  Throwing  open  the 
shop  door,  he  obeyed.  The  stranger  answered  the  hasty 
summons  directly,  and  a  sense  of  relief,  a  feeling  of 
strength,  seemed  to  enter  the  place  with  him. 

Yet,  he  wore  a  very  grave  expression  as  his  keen,  pro 
fessional  eye  fell  upon  the  apothecary. 

"  What  is  the  meaning  of  this  ? "  he  asked  Holden  with 
authoritative  brevity. 

In  as  few  words  as  possible  Holden  explained  what 
must  have  been  done. 

The  doctor  took  up  the  bottle,  and  touched  the  moist 
ened  stopper  lightly,  with  his  tongue. 


2 QO  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  Put  that  on  the  shelf,  and  come  and  help  me, "  he 
cried;  "there  is  not  a  moment  to  be  lost." 

They  did  not  lose  one;  they  worked  over  the  apothe 
cary  untiringly;  the  physician  called  for  this  thing  and 
that,  sent  his  companion  now  to  the  end  of  the  shop, 
now  to  a  house  close  at  hand,  to  bring  what  he  needed; 
and  Holden  did  everything  with  a  deftness  and  dispatch 
which  plainly  won  the  doctor's  approbation. 

In  the  intervals  of  his  service,  while  the  physician 
waited  to  see  the  effect  of  his  efforts,  he,  too,  stood  beside 
him  and  watched  the  agonized  man  with  an  overwhelm 
ing  sense  of  horror  and  remorse.  For,  if  he  had  man 
aged  better,  this  would  not  have  happened.  It  was  true, 
nothing  had  been  further  from  his  thought  than  that  such 
a  result  could  be  possible,  and  he  had  really  been  obliged 
to  put  the  questions.  Yet,  here  lay  a  man  dying,  who,  if 
Holden  had  never  entered  his  shop,  would  be  in  full  health. 

He  recollected  that  probably  it  had  been  only  a  choice 
between  this  victim  and  some  other  one,  innocent  even  of 
having  made  a  mistake  in  the  matter.  But  he  could  not 
help  remembering  that  he  would  not  have  been  in  the  re 
motest  way  connected  with  any  other  accident,  or  even 
have  known  about  it. 

"Is  there  no  hope?"  he  asked  at  length,  seeing  that 
the  convulsive  movements  had  ceased  and  the  apothecary 
lay  cold  and  apparently  insensible. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  291 

But,  as  he  spoke,  a  shuddering  gasp  from  the  prostrate 
man 'proved  that  life  was  still  there,  although  his  rigidity, 
and  his  dilated  pupils  that  the  full  light  could  not  make 
contract,  seemed  to  Holden  like  death  itself. 

"Don't  give  up  yet,"  cried  the  doctor.  "It  will  not 
be  pleasant  for  you,  at  least,  if  we  don't  keep  the  breath 
in  him." 

Astonishment  rendered  Holden  motionless  for  the 
moment. 

Then,  he  saw  that  it  was  really  so,  and  a  strange  thrill 
went  through  him.  Did  he  stand  so  close  beside  Helen 
as  to  snatch  her  away  from  danger  only  by  taking  her 
place  himself? 

People  anxious  to  be  assistants  if  necessary,  and  specta 
tors  in  any  event,  had  not  been  wanting.  The  physician 
had  turned  them  all  out  with  the  autocratic  authority  of 
his  profession  and  the  two  were  alone  when  he  said  this  to 
Holden. 

"I  understand  how  it  was,"  he  added,  watching  the 
other's  expression  keenly. 

Jack  made  no  answer,  his  eyes  were  fixed  upon  the 
apothecary. 

It  was  two  hours  from  this  time  that  he  walked  rapidly 
to  Helen  Bell's  home. 

He  wondered  if,   after  all,  he  were  too  late. 

As  he  reached  the  gate  he  saw  far  up  the  street,  on  a 


292  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

little  open  space  in  which  were  a  few  trees,  a  man  leaning 
against  the  largest  of  these,  reading  a  newspaper,  but 
not  so  much  occupied  with  it  as  to  prevent  him  from 
eying  Holden  with  scrutiny  as  the  latter  went  up  the 
few  steps  that  led  to  the  porch,  and  keeping  a  sharp 
lookout  upon  the  door  as  it  opened  and  closed  again. 

This  sight  changed  Jack's  purpose.  It  had  seemed 
a  very  simple  thing  to  assure  himself  of  Helen's  safety 
when  he  was  so  near  her,  to  look  at  her  and  say  a  few 
words  before  he  went  into  town  again  and  put  a  stop 
to  all  intended  proceedings  against  her.  But  now,  be 
lieving  himself  watched,  he  recalled  Knight's  warning, 
and  saw  that  the  detective  might  learn  of  his  presence 
here,  and  already  be  on  his  way  to  Helen,  as  he  had 
threatened,  before  it  was  possible  to  intercept  him. 

Then  it  occurred  to  him  that  this  might  be  the  very 
hour  the  detective  had  chosen  for  her  arrest.  Conse 
quently,  when  the  door  opened  in  answer  to  his  ring, 
he  inquired  not  for  Miss  Bell,  but  if  Mr.  Knight  were 
there. 

He  was  there. 

Jack  asked  to  speak  with  him  at  the  door. 

The  detective  came  forward  with  a  smile  of  satisfaction 
upon  his  face. 

"Mr.  Holden?"  he  said,  "ah,  indeed.  I  am  not 
surprised  to  see  you  here.  Pray  come  in.  I  am  sure 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  293 

Miss  Bell  will  be  pleased  to  meet  you;  and  I  am  quite 
sure  you  and  I  have  nothing  to  talk  about  which  will  not 
be  interesting  to  her." 

As  he  spoke  he  moved  back  close  to  the  door  from 
which  he  had  come,  the  door  of  the  room  in  which 
Holden  knew  Helen  must  be.  Full  of  this  thought  he 
reached  forward  to  grasp  the  other  and  compel  him  to 
listen  outside,  but  to  do  it  he  had  to  cross  the  threshold, 
and  the  detective  was  too  quick  for  him.  In  a  moment  he 
was  within  the  room  again,  signing  to  Holden  to  follow. 

Holden  was  so  intent  upon  having  his  explanation 
out  of  Helen's  presence  that  he  would  have  risked  an 
apparent  rudeness  which  he  should  never  be  able  to 
explain  to  her  rather  than  that  she  should  know  what 
had  threatened  her.  There  suggested  itself  to  him  the 
idea  of  making  an  appeal  to  her  and  requesting  a  mo 
ment  alone  with  Knight  in  the  room,  since  the  young 
man  refused  it  at  the  door. 

But  a  second  thought  satisfied  him  that  this  would 
only  precipitate  matters,  and  turn  an  imminent  danger 
into  a  certainty,  for  the  detective  was  not  a  man  who 
could  be  driven  in  this  way. 

But  Jack  had  only  a  moment  then  to  spare  for  him. 
In  another  instant  his  eyes  were  dwelling  on  the  face  of 
Helen  Bell,  and  he  was  holding  the  hand  she  slowly 
extended  to  meet  his  own/ 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

IT  was  hard  to  take  Helen's  hand  in  his,  to  feel  the 
touch  of  her  fingers,  to  know  that  she  was  in  danger, 
to  see  the  power  that  was  threatening  her  close  at  hand 
and  intrenched  in  security,  to  be  ready  to  spend  his  life 
to  save  her,  and  yet  be  compelled  to  do  nothing.  He 
must  conform  to  the  apparent  tranquillity  about  him, 
and  seem  as  unconscious  of  impending  calamity  as  the 
quiet  room  he  was  in,  which,  according  as  the  fever  tide 
of  impatience  within  him  ebbed  and  flowed,  alternately 
soothed  him  with  its  restfulness  and  chafed  him  by  its 
inappropriateness  to  the  present  situation. 

While  this  undercurrent  of  thought  was  going  on,  he 
perceived  that  Helen  was  pale,  that  she  looked  wearied. 
But  he  saw  also  that  her  manner  to  Knight  was  perfectly 
calm.  This,  and  the  smiling  face  of  the  detective,  like 
that  of  a  person  whose  purpose  is  not  yet  declared,  gave 
him  a  happy  assurance.  He  had  not  gained  his  informa 
tion  too  late  to  save  this  noble  woman  from  a  shock 
which  would  have  prostrated  her  like  the  spring  of  a 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  295 

tiger.  Now,  he  had  only  to  hint  the  truth  to  the  de 
tective,  and  she  was  saved.  Life  seemed  of  great  value 
to  him  at  the  moment 

' '  Did  you  leave  our  friends  in  Lowton  well  ? "  Helen 
was  asking  him. 

"Yes,"  he  answered;  but  after  a  moment's  hesitation 
added:  "every  one,  except  Mrs.  Mason.  She  seems 
greatly  out  of  health.  She  does  not  keep  her  room, 
but  her  husband  is  much  troubled  about  her.  It  is 
some  slight  mental  derangement,  I  fear." 

" Indeed  !"  said  Helen.  "I  am  very  sorry.  It  must 
be  a  sudden  thing.  Yet,  I — " 

She  stopped.  A  look  of  regret  came  over  her  face. 
She  was  thinking  that  if  this  were  the  case,  she  had  not 
been  lenient  enough  in  her  judgment  of  Kitty. 

' '  Her  '  derangement'  then  is  clearer  than  most  per 
sons'  arrangement,"  said  Knight  with  a  low  laugh  of 
exultation  which  reached  Holden  like  the  touch  of  cold 
steel  and  roused  him  to  defense. 

Helen  stood  between.  He  could  not  thrust  at  Knight 
now  without  wounding  her,  too. 

She  perceived  the  tone  of  Knight's  reply  without  com 
prehending  his  reason  for  it. 

"This  has  been  since  I  left?"  she  asked  Holden. 

' '  Further  back  than  that, "  he  said.  ' '  I  have  reason 
to  believe  as  early  as  February. " 


296  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

She  was  silent.  The  secret  eagerness  with  which  she 
had  asked  this  question  left  a  flush  on  her  face.  Holden 
saw  the  detective's  eyes  fixed  upon  it  triumphantly.  It 
was  another  pass  at  him,  but  he  recollected  that  the 
man's  hour  would  come. 

Helen  changed  the  subject. 

The  minutes  went  by  slowly  to  Holden,  and  still 
Knight  sat  there  and  talked  on  and  on,  taking  the  lead 
in  the  conversation,  and  following  his  own  lead  well. 

"Why  won't  the  man  go,"  thought  Jack,  "and  give 
me  a  chance  to  tell  him  that  this  little  game  of  his  is  up  ? 
Does  he  mean  to  outstay  me  ? " 

He  forgot  that  it  was  Knight  whom  he  had  inquired 
for  as  he  came  in. 

But  he  remembered  the  man  beside  the  tree  in  the 
distance,  and  he  believed  the  detective  had  really  come 
to  arrest  her — to  arrest  her  for  attempted  murder  ! 

' '  Yet,  how  can  he  be  planning  to  do  this  to-day  ? " 
he  asked  himself,  watching  the  talker's  smiling  assurance 
of  manner  in  describing  an  amusing  scene  he  had  wit 
nessed.  The  face  gave  him  a  momentary  relief,  until, 
suddenly,  he  caught  sight  of  the  eyes.  There  was  a 
dangerous  glitter  in  them. 

Then  he  saw  that  it  would  not  do  to  wait  for  the  man 
to  go  away.  He  must  by  some  means  inform  him  here 
of  the  discovery  just  made,  and  do  it,  too,  before  it  was 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  297 

too  late  to  save  Helen  from  the  knowledge  of  what  had 
threatened  her. 

Yes,  unquestionably  he  must  warn  the  detective,  but 
how? 

He  had  been  too  much  engrossed  by  his  perplexities 
to  hear  the  story  Knight  was  telling,  but  this  closing 
sentence  caught  his  attention — "I  told  Knowles,"  he 
said,  "it  recalled  the  old  proverb,  'All  that  glitters 
is  not  gold. '  " 

"Very  true,"  assented  Jack  quickly;  "and,  oddly 
enough,  that  is  just  what  I  was  going  to  say  to  you,  Mr. 
Knight,  in  regard  to  that  business  affair  you  and  I  were 
talking  over  the  other  day.  I  was  quite  sure  then  you 
had  made  a  wrong  estimate,  and  I  have  proved  it  to-day 
by  finding  the  right  one." 

"Really?"  said  the  other  incredulously. 

' '  Yes,  beyond  a  doubt, "  cried  Jack,  his  repressed 
eagerness  betraying  itself  through  his  quiet  tones. 

"Mr.  Holden,  then,  does  sometimes  care  to  be  suc 
cessful  ? "  inquired  Helen  with  a  mischievous  smile. 

"Indeed,  I  do;  and  one  ought" 

' '  He  has  not  proved  himself  successful, "  sneered 
Knight,  "he  has  only  shown  us  he  imagines  he  is  so. 
Suppose  you  give  us  the  whole  story,  Holden,  and  let 
us  judge  of  your  success.  Or,  Miss  Bell  shall  be  umpire. 
She  will  infallibly  perceive  which  of  us  is  right." 


298  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Jack  looked  at  him  in  utter  dismay.  The  words  he 
had  been  about  to  speak  would  not  come.  His  first 
involuntary  comparison  had  been  just;  the  danger  that 
threatened  was  the  spring  of  a  tiger.  Thank  Heaven, 
he  held  the  creature  in  leash.  But  he  feared  he  should 
not  be  able  to  prevent  a  vicious  blow  at  Helen. 

This  fear  gave  to  his  face  a  pallor  and  constraint  which 
she  noticed  with  surprise.  It  looked  to  her  as  if  there 
were  something  in  his  business  relations  that  could  not 
bear  investigation.  But  she  remembered  that  this  sug 
gestion  was  out  of  keeping  with  what  she  knew  about  him. 

"I  have  never  heard  what  your  business  is,  Mr. 
Knight,"  she  said,  "though  I  remember  your  talking 
with  Mr.  Mason  one  evening  in  a  way  that  gave  me 
the  impression  you  were  a  lawyer." 

"Now  I  shall  know  what  he  means  to  do,"  thought 
Jack  quivering  in  every  nerve  as  he  listened  for  the  an 
swer  he  could  not  prevent. 

"You  are  very  shrewd,  Miss  Bell,"  said  the  detective 
with  a  smile  of  subtle  meaning.  ' '  I  certainly  am  in 
some  way  often  connected  with  the  law,  but  it  is  not 
in  the  way  of  laying  it  down  to  others,"  and  he  made  a 
deliberate  little  pause  sufficient  to  point  his  remark. 
' '  You  can  get  an  idea, "  he  added,  ' '  from  what  Mr. 
Holden  was  saying  just  now  in  answer  to  my  quotation 
that  'all  that  glitters  is  not  gold.'" 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  299 

"I  was  saying  nothing  that  could  enlighten  Miss 
Bell,"  interposed  Jack  hurriedly. 

' '  Pardon  me, "  returned  the  other  in  his  blandest 
tones,  "but  your  answer  did  exactly  explain  it.  You 
said  the  proverb  referred  to  a  little  matter  of  business  we 
were  talking  over  the  other  day.  That's  quite  right. 
It  is  my  business  to  distinguish  between  what  glitters 
and  what  is  gold.  I  am  what  is  called  an  expert,  Miss 
Bell,  when  I  find  it  worth  my  while  to  do  anything 
at  all." 

Helen  caught  sight  of  a  quick  expression  of  relief  in 
Holden's  face. 

So  did  Knight. 

' '  And  you  judge  of  precious  metals  ?  You  are  an 
assayer?"  she  asked. 

"  Of  a  certain  kind,  yes.  My  metals  are  always  val 
uable  in  a  certain  point  of  view.  And  so  when  a  novice, 
like  our  friend  here,  presumes  to  tell  me  I  am  mistaken, 
I  venture  to  doubt  it." 

"You  may  'venture  to  doubt  it,'  if  you  like,"  returned 
Jack  in  a  low,  stern  voice,  "but  if  you  venture  to  act 
upon  any  such  incredulity,  you  will  find  the  conse 
quences  very  serious  for  yourself." 

Knight  shrugged  his  shoulders  with  an  exasperating 
insolence.  "Indeed,  my  dear  fellow,"  he  said,  "I'm 
used  to  threats;  they  don't  affect  me  at. all." 


300  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Holden  made  no  answer,  and  for  a  moment  the  two 
men  eyed  each  other  in  silence. 

Then  he  took  out  from  his  pocket-book  a  scrap  of 
paper  that  looked  like  an  old  envelope,  and  with  a 
word  of  apology  to  Helen  went  to  the  table,  and  taking 
up  a  book  to  lay  the  paper  against,  wrote  a  few  words 
and  passed  the  envelope  to  Knight. 

"If  you  will  go  to  that  address,"  he  said  coldly,  "you 
will  find  I  have  not  spoken  without  knowing  what  I  was 
saying. " 

An  expression  of  satisfaction  came  over  Holden's  face 
as  he  handed  the  paper  to  the  other.  All  that  duty  now 
required  of  the  detective  was  to  read  it,  and  take  his 
leave,  in  order  to  satisfy  himself  of  the  accuracy  of  its 
information.  He  would  never  return,  and  Helen  would 
never  know  what  disaster  she  had  escaped. 

The  long  silence  that  followed  the  other's  reading  of  the 
few  words  written  on  the  paper  surprised  Holden.  He 
grew  impatient,  but  would  not  break  the  pause  to  give 
him  any  excuse  for  staying  another  moment.  Detective 
Day  receiving  a  gentle  hint  in  Miss  Bell's  presence, 
might,  with  a  malice  Jack  was  not  wholly  at  a  loss  to 
account  for,  refuse  to  understand  it.  But  with  this  plain 
statement  before  him,  no  other  course  than  quiet  with 
drawal  was  open  to  him,  at  least  for  the  time. 

Detective   Day,    however,    was  of  a  different  opinion. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  301 

He  had  a  still  deeper  reason  than  Holden  guessed  at 
for  wanting  success  in  this  affair,  at  least  so  far  as  to 
the  publicity  of  an  arrest,  and  the  suffering  it  would  bring 
Helen.  He  would  like  to  gratify  Jenny  Grierson's  aunt. 
Some  day  he  might  be  glad  of  her  influence  in  his  behalf. 

He  made  no  move  to  go.  On  the  contrary,  he  sat 
down  again  after  having  twice  carefully  read  the  paper 
which  Jack  had  called  him  to  the  table  to  receive. 

"Unprecedented  conduct,  Mr.  Holden,"  he  began 
very  deliberately,  "for  gentlemen  to  be  writing  and 
reading  secret  messages  in  the  presence  of  a  lady.  And 
this  one  has  a  very  mysterious  sound.  I  wonder  if  you 
can  help  me  decipher  it,  Miss  Bell  ? " 

"No,   no,"  cried  Jack  hastily.      "Impertinent—" 

"No,  no!"  interposed  Miss  Bell  also.  "Mr.  Hold- 
en  does  not  wish  it." 

"'Henry  Clayton,  58  Ashland  St.,'"  began  Knight 
imperturbably,  "  'he  has  found  the  strychnine  and  almost 
died  tasting  from  the  bottle  it  was  in.  Dr.  Stephens 
with  him.  Inquire  before  you  dare  to  act. ' " 

As  he  finished,  he  glanced  quickly  into  Helen's  face. 
She  was  looking  very  much  puzzled. 

"How  little  she  dreams,  my  poor  darling!"  thought 
Holden. 

"If  this  is  business,"  she  said,  "I  confess  that  I  have 
no  head  for  it;  I  don't  comprehend.  But  I  hope  the  poor 


302  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

man  did  not  really  die,"  and  she  looked  at  Jack.  "Or 
perhaps  this  is  a  kind  of  cipher  writing,  and  means 
something  quite  different  ?  " 

"No, "said  Jack.  He  was  smiling  now.  The  worst 
was  over;  why  should  he  have  even  feared  it  could  have 
conveyed  any  meaning  to  her,  or  that  she  would  have 
asked  an  explanation?  Only  the  good  remained,  the 
detective  had  been  told. 

"Go  and  see  for  yourself,"  he  said  to  Knight  in  an 
authoritative  tone  which  made  Helen  glance  at  him 
wonderingly. 

' '  I  need  not  take  all  that  trouble, "  was  the  answer 
with  a  bow  that  to  Jack  had  infinite  mockery  in  it. 
"Mr.  Holden's  assurance  is  quite  enough  to  satisfy  us 
both.  But,  Miss  Bell,"  he  continued,  "since  Mr.  Holden 
is  not  disposed  to  do  it,  politeness  requires  me  to 
explain  something  of  the  meaning  of  these  enigmatical 
words;  they  have  some  reference  to  you,  as  you  may  have 
guessed. " 

Helen  looked  at  him  in  astonishment. 

A  hand  was  laid  roughly  on  his  collar,  and  Holden's 
voice  said, 

' '  If  you  dare  to  attempt  that,  I  will  shake  you  into 
the  street  like  a  dog,  and  shut  the  door  upon  you." 

1 '  Oh,  very  well.  You'll  have  to  open  it  to  me  again 
in  the  name  of  the  law,  which,  to  say  the  least  of  it, 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  303 

would  make  it  unpleasant  for  this  young  lady.  She 
would  then  be  called  upon  to  answer  questions,  instead 
of  asking  them,  which,  you  know,  is  much  the  easier  of 
the  two." 

Jack  released  his  hold. 

"Jove's  thunder  without  Jove  behind  it,"  sneered 
the  other. 

"Never  mind  me,"  cried  Jack,  "but  have  you  no 
feeling  ? " 

"A  good  deal,  on  my  honor,"  answered  the  detective 
re-adjusting  his  crumpled  collar;  "a  good  deal,  in  spite 
of  your  having  endeavored  to  shake  it  all  out  of  me  ? " 

"What  do  you  mean  by  asking  admittance  here  'in 
the  name  of  the  law'?"  said  Helen.  "Mr.  Holden,"  she 
added,  "you  must  see  that  it  is  no  longer  possible  to 
keep  back  any  danger  that  hangs  over  us." 

"No,"  he  answered,  "but  the  danger  has  passed,  be 
assured;  and  you  might  have  been  spared  all  knowledge 
of  it" 

"Not  quite  so  fast,  please,"  interposed  Knight,  "/ 
have  not  said  that  all  danger  was  over.  Miss  Bell,  let 
me  inform  you,  since  I  will  have  the  courtesy  to  suppose 
you  unaware  of  the  fact,  that  there  was  a  large  quantity 
of  strychnine  in  the  medicine  you  wished  to  give  Mrs. 
Mason  last  winter — more  than  enough  to  have  caused 
her  death." 


304  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

A  long  silence  followed  this  statement.  Helen's  eyes 
were  fastened  upon  the  speaker's  face  in  a  wonder  that 
deepened  into  horror.  She  sat  without  moving;  but 
though  her  face  was  very  white,  it  was  not  with  faint- 
ness,  all  her  faculties  were  keenly  alive. 

At  length  she  turned  to  Holden.  There  was  an  un 
conscious  appeal  in  her  look  which  he  could  not  endure 
in  silence  a  moment. 

"It  is  all  made  clear,"  he  cried.  "I  have  seen  the 
whole  explanation  myself  to-day,  as  I  always  knew  I 
must.  Do  not  be  troubled.  There  was  no  reason  why 
you  should  ever  have  known  this,"  he  repeated. 

She  said  nothing.  Slowly,  her  natural  color  came 
back,  and  a  faint  flush  followed  it,  which  before  it  could 
deepen,  lost  itself  in  a  flitting  smile. 

After  a  few  moments  more  of  silence,  she  said  to 
Knight, 

' '  Was  this  the  reason  why  I  lost  the  phial  of  medicine 
I  brought  with  me  to  Lowton  ? " 

"Yes." 

"Did  you  take  it?" 

"That  is  a  hard  question,  Miss  Bell.  Excuse  me 
from  answering  it,  but  remember  I  am  under  orders, 
and  compelled  to  do  many  things  which  are  very  much 
against  the  grain." 

"Mr.   Holden — ''Jack  noticed  how  much  gentler  her 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  305 

tones  were — "will  you  please  tell  me  what  you  have 
learned  to-day  about  this  thing  ? " 

' '  I  have  learned  how  the  strychnine  came  into  the 
bottle,"  he  answered,  and  he  gave  a  full  account  of  the 
scene  in  which  he  had  just  played  a  part,  prefacing  it 
for  Knight's  benefit  by  his  interview  with  the  Lowton 
apothecary. 

The  detective  listened  with  close  attention,  taking  notes 
here  and  there. 

' '  How  did  this  man  attempt  to  account  for  the  pres 
ence  of  strychnine  in  the  syrup  ? "  he  asked. 

"He  was  able  to  speak  very  little  when  I  left,  but  he 
thought  it  must  have  happened  when  his  errand-boy 
washed  bottles  for  him.  He  probably  mixed  them  up 
a  little,  and  supposed  this  one  had  been  cleaned,  and 
the  colorless  fluid  which  he  shook  out  of  it  lightly  was 
only  a  little  of  the  water  left  from  rinsing,  instead  of  the 
strongest  solution  of  strychnine.  The  apothecary  remem 
bered  afterward  using  that  bottle  once  before  it  was 
pushed  back  out  of  sight." 

"Um  !     Did  he  tell  you  that?" 

"  He  told  it  to  Dr.  Stephens  and  me;  the  doctor  has 
taken  the  syrup  in  charge.  You  will  find  the  matter  all 
out  from  him." 

' '  Um  ! "  repeated  the  detective,  and  considered  a  few 
moments. 


306  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Then  he  rose. 

"I  shall  be  back  in  a  short  time,"  he  said  to  Helen, 
"and  I  must  request  you  not  to  leave  the  house  in  my 
absence;  indeed,  it  would  be  of  no  use  to  attempt  it. 
But  I  shall  hope  to  return  with  the  brightest  of  news  for 
you,  Miss  Bell.  At  all  events,  I  hope  you  will  pardon 
the  unpleasant  part  I  have  been  obliged  to  play,  and  that 
when  we  next  meet  it  will  be  under  more  agreeable 
auspices." 

With  quite  his  old  manner  he  bowed  himself  out  of 
the  room. 

' '  I  shall  never  speak  to  him  again, "  said  Helen  when 
he  had  gone,  "not  because  he  has  watched  me,  for  that 
may  have  been  in  his  duty.  He  must  really  have  some 
thing  to  do  with  the  police  ? "  she  asked. 

"Yes,"  said  Holden. 

"But  because  he  has  pretended  friendliness  and  inter 
est,"  she  continued.  "I  never  liked  him.  I  have  often 
wondered  how  he  could  find  encouragement  enough  to 
come  so  often.  Yet  he  quite  amused  my  mother.  If 
she  had  only  known  !  Will  you  see  him  when  he  comes 
back  ?  Ashland  Street  is  very  near,  he  will  not  be  gone 
long." 

' '  Certainly,  if  he  come.  But  he  will  never  return. 
He  is  keen  enough  to  know  when  his  occupation  has 
gone. " 


A   LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  307 

Helen  made  no  answer.  Reaction  from  the  terrible 
excitement  of  the  last  half  hour,  in  which  she  had  heard 
her  own  accusation,  and  listened  to  Holden's  refutation 
of  it,  was  coming  on.  Relieved  from  the  tension  of  the 
detective's  presence,  she  yielded  to  the  exhaustion  the 
interview  had  brought  her.  After  these  few  words  to 
Holden,  which  she  uttered  standing  as  she  had  been 
when  Knight  left  them,  she  sank  down  upon  the  sofa, 
and  folding  both  hands  over  its  arm,  laid  her  face  upon 
them,  and  remained  for  some  time  motionless. 

Holden  had  never  seen  her  unnerved  before.  She 
had  been  quiet  and  grave  sometimes,  as  if  oppressed  by 
weariness  or  a  hidden  anxiety,  but  this  even  momentary 
abandonment  of  herself  to  suffering  was  something  quite 
new  in  his  experience  of  her.  It  seemed  to  make  her 
infinitely  tender  and  beautiful. 

He  checked  his  desire  to  speak  words  of  consolation. 
He  saw  that  she  must  understand  his  sympathy  in  this 
silence,  else  she  could  not  treat  him  like  a  friend  as  she 
was  doing  now. 

•:  Contrary  to  his  intention  she  had  learned  how  much 
he  had  had  to  do  with  this  speedy  discovery  of  the  truth 
in  regard  to  the  poison.  But  this  very  fact,  of  which  she 
was  showing  her  appreciation,  restrained  him. 

She  would  like  best  to  have  him  say  nothing.  But 
as  he  stood  by  the  window,  waiting  until  she  should 


308  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

recover  herself,  and  watching  to  see  if  Knight  did  by 
any  possibility  come  back,  he  looked  at  her  with  si 
lent  admiration  and  tenderness. 

The  heavy  coil  of  her  dark  hair  left  the  shape  of  her 
perfect  head  revealed,  the  bend  of  her  neck  and  her 
shoulders  was  grace  itself,  and  in  her  attitude  there  was 
an  evidence  of  silent  suffering  which  touched  him  al 
most  more  than  he  could  bear. 

He  recalled  how  cruelly  she  had  been  treated,  tra 
duced,  persecuted,  dogged  by  a  spy,  accused,  only  be 
cause  she  was  too  beautiful  and  too  good.  He  was 
in  no  condition  to  give  credence  to  any  suggestion 
of  honesty  on  Kitty's  part.  He  saw,  as  he  watched 
Helen,  that  she  was  going  over  all  her  experience  again. 

He  did  not  believe  there  were  tears  in  her  eyes,  he 
could  not  imagine  her  overcome  in  this  way;  but  he 
knew  that  her  face  when  she  raised  it  must  be  very 
sad  and  full  of  pain. 

And  yet  there  surely  ought  to  be  something  besides 
pain  in  it.  She  had  just  cause  for  anger.  He  knew 
she  must  be  feeling  it,  for  she  was  not  a  person  too 
weak  to  be  capable  of  righteous  indignation. 

Surely,  when  he  saw  her  eyes  again  they  would  flash 
with  a  sense  of  the  wrongs  and  indignities  to  which 
she  had  been  subjected.  She  would  have  some  word 
of  keen  condemnation  for  the  way  in  which  she  had 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  309 

been  treated,  like  those  he  had  heard  from  her  in  view 
of  lighter  offenses. 

When  was  she  going  to  look  up  again  ?  She  was 
so  perfectly  still,  was  it  possible  she  had  fainted?  To 
see  if  this  were  so,  he  moved  slightly.  She  looked 
up  at  the  sound.  The  pallor  of  her  face,  and  the  feel 
ing  in  it  were  even  greater  than  he  had  expected.  A 
horror  was  written  there.  She  passed  one  hand  over 
the  other,  as  if  to  assure  herself  of  her  own  reality. 

"If  she  had  taken  it,  it  would  have  killed  her," 
she  said,  "and  I  urged  her  to  do  it.  Think!" 

And  as  she  spoke  a  grayness  crept  over  her  face. 

This  was  the  way  in  which  she  had  been  dwelling 
upon  her  wrongs. 

The  man  made  a  hasty  step  forward,  then  stood  spell 
bound.  The  storm-tide  in  his  heart  beat  against  his 
lips. 

"Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again," 

spoke  the  voice  within  him.  And  was  he  to  beg  her 
to  be  grateful  to  him  for  saving  her  from  public  exami 
nation  and  newspaper  reports  ?  The  spirit  of  sarcasm 
whispered  that  this  was  a  fine  opportunity;  he  had 
had  a  striking  example  of  the  high  place  which  the 
rights  of  others  held  in  her  mind;  in  such  a  moment 


310  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

as  this  she  had  forgotten  what  had  been  maliciously 
done  against  herself  to  recall  what  she  might  in  per 
fect  unconsciousness  have  done  to  another.  It  was 
the  most  opportune  time  to  urge  his  own  dues;  no 
doubt  she  would  be  very  grateful  to  him,  especially  as 
he  had  been  obliged  to  tell  of  his  efforts  himself. 

When  next  he  moved,  it  was  to  take  a  seat  further 
away  from  Helen. 

"Only  a  childish  hate  of  bitter  tastes  fenced  her  off 
from  death,"  she  added,  "and  this  safeguard  seemed 
to  me  so  puerile.  How  can  we  ever  judge  anything 
at  its  real  value  ?  " 

"I  suppose  we  seldom  can,"  answered  Jack.  "But 
I  have  thought  a  great  deal  more  of  the  insult  you 
have  received,  and  the  trouble  you  might  be  exposed 
to,  than  of  this  momentary  danger." 

"That  is  natural,  I  think.  One  was  over  before 
you  knew  of  it,  the  other  was  in  the  future,  and — you 
have  been  very  kind,  Mr.  Holden." 

Helen  remembered  that  he  had  said  Kitty's  mental 
derangement  began  in  February,  and  that  he  still  believed 
her  earlier  representations. 

"I  do  not  think,"  he  answered,  his  self-repression 
producing  a  slight  embarrassment,  "that  it  is  being 
'kind'  to  right  what  one  sees  going  very  wrong,  to 
prevent  a  dreadful  injustice  that  the  sufferer  would 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  311 

feel  through  life.  You  must  not  consider  it  so,  or  indeed 
think  of  it  at  all;  it  is  quite  a  natural  thing  to  do." 

Stupid  Jack !  He  saw  in  a  moment  what  he  had 
said.  He  had  been  so  anxious  to  remove  any  sense 
of  obligation  from  her  and  not  to  take  unfair  advan 
tage  of  the  situation,  that  he  had  ended  by  declaring 
in  effect  that  he  would  have  been  equally  ready  to  do 
the  same  thing  for  anybody. 

"And  with  you,"  he  added  hastily,  "of  course,  you 
must  see  it  was  very  different." 

"Yes,"  said  Helen  simply,  "when  you  know  a 
person,  I  can  understand  that  even  you  would  be  a  little 
more  quick  to  realize  the  case." 

"And  one  like  you  who  would  feel  the  thing  so 
deeply,"  he  said,  wondering  if  she  had  meant  her  last 
words  as  a  hint  of  repulse. 

"Yes,"  she  answered,  "it  would  very  possibly  have 
affected  my  career  as  an  artist,  or  at  least  it  would 
have  clung  to  me  like  a  shadow,  and  dogged  any 
reputation  I  may  perhaps  win.  You  certainly  have 
been  very  kind,  Mr.  Holden,  although  you  will  not 
allow  me  to  say  it." 

Her  smile  as  she  spoke  was  like  a  faint  ray  of  sun 
shine  that  breaks  through  the  clouds  and  at  once  dis 
appears  again.  It  seemed  only  to  make  the  sadness  of 
her  face  more  noticeable. 


312  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

Holden  sat  lost  in  his  sympathy  for  her.  How  could 
he  suppose  it  possible  she  did  not  understand  that  what 
he  had  just  done  would,  he  hoped,  help  in  some  way 
to  atone  for  the  false  ideas  he  had  once  held  concern 
ing  her,  beliefs  that  were  now  inconceivable,  and  that 
had  humiliated  him. 

"Do  you  see  him  coming?"  Helen  asked  shrinking 
back  upon  the  sofa  again  as  Holden  looked  into  the 
street 

"I  am  sure  he  will  not  come.  Do  not  be  troubled 
about  him.  The  man  in  the  Park — "  he  stopped 
abruptly.  "There  is  no  danger  of  Knight  coming 
back,"  he  said. 

' '  There  were  two  of  them  ? " 

' '  I  fancied  so  this  afternoon, "  he  admitted  reluctantly. 

There  was  a  silence. 

"My  mother  is  spending  the  day  in  town,"  Helen 
said.  ' '  She  will  be — " 

She  stopped,  and  the  tears  stood  in  her  eyes,  a  sob 
rose  in  her  throat.  It  was  plain  that  she  was  over 
wrought.  The  strain  of  previous  hard  work  and  of 
this  fearful  accusation  now  had  been  terrible.  She  was 
awakening  more  and  more  to  a  realization  of  her  sit 
uation,  and  this  last  shock  produced  by  her  vivid  pict 
uring  of  the  two  men  who  had  come  to  arrest  her 
for  the  most  frightful  of  crimes,  the  shock  and  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  313 

rebound  of  relief  that  she  was  saved  from  it  all,  broke 
down  her  self-control  completely. 

With  the  remnants  of  it  she  rose,  and  held  out  both 
her  hands  to  Holden. 

' '  Thank  you, "  she  said  in  a  voice  that  thrilled  him — 
"and  good-by." 

It  was   long  after  this    that   Mrs.    Bell   came   home. 

' '  What !  Are  you  sitting  here  alone  in  the  dark, 
Helen  ? " 

"Do  you  want  a  light,  mamma?  This  is  so  much 
pleasanter  when  we  have  nothing  to  do." 

' '  Certainly  much  pleasanter  for  castle-building, "  laughed 
the  elder  lady. 

"Very  true,"  answered  her  daughter  sadly.  "There 
are  a  great  many  things  one  can  imagine  real  when  only 
the  twilight  stars  are  looking  on,  that  the  lamplight, 
or  the  daylight,  show  us  are  quite  impossible,  absurd 
even. " 

' '  And  you  want  to  go  on  with  your  dreams  ? " 

"No,  mamma;  but  I  have  something  to  tell  you,  and 
I  can  talk  better  in  the  dark." 

"  Is  it  a  dark  thing,  Helen  ? " 

"Yes,  indeed,"  answered  the  girl,  so  earnestly  that 
her  mother  became  grave  at  once,  and  seated  herself 
near  her  daughter  in  silence. 

"There  is  one  thing  I  must  correct,"  began  Helen 


314  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

at  last.  "Very  likely  you  have  forgotten  what  I  said, 
but  it  was  too  unjust  to  be  passed  over.  The  day  the 
news  came  about  my  picture,  we  were  talking  and  you 
happened  to  mention  Mr.  Holden.  I  spoke  slightingly 
of  him,  and  said  you  would  not  like  him.  It  seemed 
so  to  me  then — or  perhaps  I  said  more  than  I  ought 
from  some  unreasonable  feeling.  But  I  was  wrong, 
mamma.  He  has  been  here  to-day  with — another  man, 
and  when  I  tell  you  what  he  has  done,  you  will  see  how 
ashamed  I  am  of  that  petulance." 

Then  Mrs.  Bell  learned  all  that  Helen  knew  of  Kitty's 
suspicion  and  Kitty's  conduct,  and  of  Holden's  successful 
efforts  to  save  her  from  a  public  accusation  of  plotting 
murder.  Helen  brought  out  these  efforts  much  more 
fully  than  Jack  had  done,  she  had  perceived  them  through 
the  silence  behind  which  he  had  screened  himself  as  much 
as  possible. 

' '  I  suppose  he  will  come  to  see  us  some  time  when  he 
is  in  town,"  said  Mrs.  Bell.  "I  should  like  to  be  able 
to  thank  him  myself." 

"I  think  not,  mamma.  He  will  not  continue  the 
acquaintance,  I  am  sure.  Friendliness  is  not  friendship, 
remember,  and  he  only  helped  me  as  the  knights  of  old 
times  aided  any  poor  distressed  damsel  they  encountered 
in  their  travels." 

Mrs.    Bell,  who  had  not  been   enlightened  upon  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  315 

subject  of  Jack's  attentions  and  Kitty's  machinations  early 
in  the  winter,  was  naturally  somewhat  puzzled  to  under 
stand  how  a  person  who  could  take  so  much  trouble  for 
another  should  not  care  even  to  call  upon  her. 

But  when  Helen  quietly  reiterated  this  assurance,  she 
made  no  further  comment. 

She  did  not,  however,  shut  her  eyes  to  the  fact  that 
there  was  something  peculiar  in  all  this,  something  which 
her  daughter's  reserve  would  not  permit  her  to  speak  of, 
even  to  her,  and  Mrs.  Bell  knew  that  she  was  more  in 
Helen's  confidence  than  any  one  else  was. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

MAY  passed,  June,  and  July.  It  was  early  in  August. 
The  summer  had  been  upon  the  whole  unusually 
hot  and  dry,  the  intervals  of  coolness  and  refreshing  rains 
were  brief  and  comparatively  few. 

Alterations  were  going  on  in  Mrs.  Edgerly's  house. 
The  work  ought  to  have  been  finished  in  June,  but  car 
penters  and  plasterers  still  went  and  came  after  midsum 
mer,  and  the  family  flitted  to  the  seashore  only  one  or 
two  at  a  time,  and  for  a  few  days  together. 

Kitty,  who  had  been  most  earnest  in  advocating  the 
changes  now  making,  was  heartily  sick  of  all  this  delay. 
She  had  not  that  power  of  entertaining  herself  which  her 
acquaintances  would  universally  have  accorded  to  her. 
She  was  a  brilliant  woman,  but  what  was  the  use  of  being 
brilliant  in  empty  rooms  ?  If  fire  is  to  come  from  flint, 
the  flint  must  be  struck  against  steel. 

She  had  a  great  deal  to  do  this  summer  in  winning 
back  Andrew,  who  was  seriously  displeased  with  her, 
and  she  was  as  good  as  could  be  all  the  day  long,  and 
every  day,  but  under  these  circumstances  it  was  very  hard 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  317 

not  to  have  a  little  gayety  as  an  encouragement.  Read 
ing  was  excellent,  no  doubt,  and  later,  when  she  went 
away,  she  would  need  to  be  "up"  in  the  current  topics; 
but  it  was  very  stupid  not  to  have  somebody  to  discuss 
the  books  with  as  they  came  along.  There  was  Andrew, 
always  glad  to  have  her  come  to  him  to  talk  about  any 
thing,  but  Andrew  was  too  clever;  he  laughed  at  her — in 
the  kindliest  way,  to  be  sure,  but  still  laughed  at  her — if 
she  grew  very  enthusiastic  over  any  popular  subject,  and 
cautioned  her  not  to  go  ahead  of  the  fashion.  Then  he 
never  said  anything  about  the  books  which  was  of  any 
special  use  to  her.  He  was  wisdom  itself  sometimes,  but 
his  speeches  were  always  so  characteristic,  so  exactly  like 
Andrew  and  so  wholly  unlike  Kitty,  that  they  could  not 
be  amplified  and  retailed  with  impromptu  grace  when 
occasion  required. 

She  had,  too,  another  cause  of  disturbance  much 
more  serious  than  the  absence  of  suitable  critics  for  books 
she  had  read  or  ought  to  have  read.  More  than  once 
rumors  of  Knight's  presence  in  Lowton  had  reached  her. 
It  was  true  that  he  might  have  come  on  business,  just  as 
he  had  done  at  her  summons.  Yet  it  was  unlikely  that 
he  would  take  the  same  character  again  so  soon;  also,  to 
offset  the  supposition,  here  was  Jenny,  who  had  grown 
fond  of  solitary  walks  this  summer.  It  was  not  always 
Bertha's  fault  that  she  left  the  house  alone;  she  often 


318  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

slipped  out  quietly,  and  on  returning  in  the  twilight 
would  glide  up  to  her  room  if  no  one  saw  her,  and  fre 
quently  say  nothing  about  having  left  it.  If  she  met  any 
of  the  family  she  would  come  into  the  drawing-room 
flushed  and  happy  with  her  pleasant  exercise,  and  full  of 
praise  of  the  Lowton  air  which  suited  her  so  well.  Kitty 
was  very  uneasy,  but  she  had  had  enough  of  espial  for  a 
time,  at  least.  She  had  promised  her  husband  that  there 
should  be  no  more  of  it,  and  she  meant  to  keep  her 
word. 

One  morning,  the  latter  part  of  July,  Mrs.  Bell  came 
into  her  daughter's  room  with  two  letters  in  her  hand. 
The  first  was  from  Mrs.  Edgerly,  begging  herself  and 
Helen  to  go  with  them  to  the  mountains  as  her  guests, 
and  to  remain  as  long  as  they  did. 

' '  Your  rooms  are  engaged, "  she  wrote,  ' '  and  we  start 
the  twelfth  of  next  month.  I  am  depending  upon  having 
you  both  with  me,  so  don't  write  me  of  any  other  arrange 
ments;  give  them  up,  if  you  have  made  them." 
'  In  the  same  envelope  was  a  little  note  from  Kitty 
to  Helen,  slipped  in  as  Mrs.  Edgerly  was  closing  her 
letter. 

' '  Dear  Helen, "  it  ran,  ' '  I  shall  not  feel  that  you  have 
really  forgiven  my  sad  mistake  unless  you  and  your 
mother  consent  to  go  with  us,  as  Aunt  Bertha  and  all 
of  us  desire  so  much." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  319 

"What  do  you  say?"  questioned  Mrs.   Bell. 

"No,  mamma,  I  cannot  go.  Leave  me  here.  I 
shall  do  nicely.  Or  let  me  go  with  Margaret  Heath 
into  the  country  for  a  few  weeks,  as  we  talked  of  doing. 
You  must  accept  the  invitation  for  Mrs.  Edgerly's  sake. 
She  knows  no  special  reason  why  I  should  not  go, 
and  after  the  first  generous  disappointment  she  will  for 
get  all  about  it  in  the  feeling  that  I  am  doing  what  is 
best  for  my  work  and  for  myself." 

"I  shall  not  go  unless  you  do,   Helen'." 

"O,   mamma  !  " 

The  girl's  tone  was  hurt.  This  determination  placed 
her  in  a  very  unpleasant  position.  Her  mother's  health 
required  a  change;  Helen  could  give  her  nothing  like 
this  which  was  here  offered  her — a  month  of  invigo 
rating  mountain  air  with  pleasant  company,  and  every 
considerate  attention.  She  knew  that  when  her  mother 
spoke  in  this  way  she  had  made  up  her  mind  irrevocably. 
There  was  nothing  left,  therefore,  but  to  sacrifice  either 
herself  or  her  mother.  She  knew  that  finally  it  must  be 
herself;  but  she  hesitated,  for  pride  is  so  difficult  a  thing 
to  conquer. 

"Very  well,  mamma,  I  will  go  with  you,"  she  said 
at  last;  "since  you  are  not  willing  to  arrange  it  in  any 
other  way. " 

Mrs.    Edgerly's   invitation   and  Kitty's  note  were  not 


320  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

the  only  letters  received  by  that  morning's  mail.  There 
was  another  one  also  bearing  the  Lowton  postmark. 

The  writer  of  this  other  letter  begged  Mrs.  Bell  to 
induce  her  daughter  to  accompany  them  this  summer. 
The  letter  said  that  Kitty  was  truly  sorry  for  her  mistake 
and  would  do  all  in  her  power  to  make  amends.  It 
added  further,  that  although  impossible  to  speak  more 
definitely  at  present,  the  conviction  that  the  expedition 
would  be  of  great  benefit  to  Helen  was  borne  in  upon 
the  writer. 

Mrs.  Bell  said  nothing  of  this  epistle,  .as  it  had  been 
plainly  intended  she  should  not.  She  herself,  too,  under 
stood  the  danger  of  speech.  But  the  consciousness  of 
the  note  lying  in  her  pocket  enabled  her  to  meet  with 
equanimity  her  daughter's  disturbed  and  reproachful 
look. 

It  was  a  few  days  after  this  that  Holden  was  seated  on 
a  rustic  bench  in  his  garden,  his  elbows  on  his  knees 
as  they  had  been  for  the  last  half  hour,  his  eyes  on  the 
ground  where,  heedless  of  the  grass  and  flowers,  he  was 
seeing  before  him  only  the  history  of  his  own  mistakes 
and  their  punishment.  He  had  given  up  the  attempt 
to  read  his  newspaper  which  was  lying  beside  him,  for 
the  only  lines  perfectly  clear  to  him  this  morning  were 
those  which  so  often  stood  between  him  and  everything 
he  tried  to  enjoy  or  think  about — 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  321 

"Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again." 

Suddenly  he  heard  footsteps  on  the  path,  and  looked 
up. 

His  first  glance  at  the  somewhat  short  and  stout  figure 
approaching  him  with  easy  indolence  was  far  from  being 
one  of  welcome. 

But  in  another  moment  he  rose  and  went  forward  to 
meet  his  visitor.  If  he  were  to  be  interrupted  at  all,  he 
would  have  chosen  Mason  as  the  intruder.  For  there 
was  a  certain  unspoken  sympathy  in  him,  as  if,  though  he 
himself  took  the  world  so  easily,  he  was  not  above  caring 
for  other  people's  troubles.  Yet  Holden  could  not  pos 
sibly  have  spoken  to  him  upon  the  matter  he  had  so 
much  at  heart. 

With  a  cordial  grasp  of  the  hand,  and  a  simple  "  How 
do  you  do,"  Mason  seated  himself  on  the  bench,  and 
taking  off  his  Panama  hat,  began  to  fan  himself  slowly 
with  it. 

"Delightful  place  here,"  he  said  after  a  time,  looking 
about  him  with  an  expression  of  satisfaction. 

He  seldom  came  into  this  garden  without  some  word 
of  appreciation.  For  it  was  no  agglomeration  of  flower 
beds  shaped  and  arranged  in  a  vain  endeavor  to  modify 
the  garish  effect  of  brilliancy  in  undue  proportion  to 
space.  Here  was  abundant  space;  many  smaller  areas 


322  A.  LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

held  a  greater  number  and  variety  of  flowers,  but  in  this 
garden  each  of  these  gems  of  the  sunshine  and  the  dew 
seemed  to  have  its  proper  setting.  The  pansies,  royal 
in  purple  and  gold,  were  enthroned  upon  a  bank  with 
the  rich  green  of  the  myrtle  vines  on  one  side,  while  on 
the  other  the  blades  of  the  fine  grass  stood  up  like  tiny 
bayonets  of  defense. 

A  woodbine  about  the  trunk  of  a  great  elm  standing 
against  the  garden  wall,  had  once  in  some  storm  swung 
up  a  spray  into  the  lower  boughs,  which  caught  there  and 
hung  in  a  fantastic  loop,  while  the  vine  climbed  every 
year  higher  into  the  tree.  As  Andrew  looked  at  it  that 
morning,  scarlet  leaves  were  already  appearing  here  and 
there,  hinting  of  the  fire  that  in  the  early  autumn  would 
quiver  through  the  sunlit  air,  and  send  its  harmless  flames 
far  up  into  the  heart  of  the  elm. 

On  all  sides  the  soft  brilliancy  of  the  velvet  grass  de 
lighted  the  eye.  It  was  so  deep  and  rich  in  tone,  that 
it  rivaled  the  beauty  of  the  flowering  vines  that  hung 
against  it,  trailing  from  basket  or  stump.  Here  and 
there  upon  the  grounds  were  arbors  covered  with  cle 
matis,  with  honeysuckle,  or  climbing  roses,  each  bloom 
ing  abundantly  in  its  season.  On  the  walls  grew  the 
woodbine,  the  ivy,  and  other  creepers.  The  later  lilies 
stood  in  their  gorgeousness,  striving,  perhaps,  to  eclipse 
the  sweet  memory  of  their  exquisite  white  sisters. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  323 

For  a  few  moments  Andrew  admired  in  silence  the 
beauty  about  him.  Holden,  too,  said  nothing. 

' '  I  saw  that  apothecary  of  yours  the  last  time  I  was 
in  town,  Holden,"  he  began.  "He  looks  in  perfect 
health  again,  and  I  don't  doubt  you  could  explain  a 
certain  well-to-do  air  about  both  himself  and  the  shop, 
which  a  neighbor  of  his  commented  upon  as  a  recent 
thing." 

"Of  course,"  answered  Jack,  "one  has  to  do  some 
thing  for  nearly  killing  a  man,  though  it  was  quite  con 
trary  to  intention." 

"That  was  last  June,"  pursued  Andrew.  "I  have 
scarcely  seen  you  since.  Did  it  occur  to  you  that  I 
might  be  waiting  to  have  some  of  my  visits  returned  ? " 

"Really,"  said  Jack  looking  disturbed;  "why  will 
you  do  that,  when  I  am  so  often  busy,  and  always  glad 
to  see  you  ? " 

"Busy  contemplating  the  growth  of  your  trees  and 
your  vines  !  It  is  astonishing  how  your  taste  for  horti 
culture  has  developed  this  summer." 

Jack's  only  answer  was  a  short  laugh. 

"  Have  you  seen  Somerton's  new  shrubbery?  "  he  asked 
presently. 

"Ye-es." 

Then  Andrew  spoke  of  the  changes  in  Mrs.  Edgerley's 
house,  and  how  it  had  kept  the  family  at  home. 


324  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"But  we  mean  this  month  to  make  up  for  our  quiet," 
he  added,  "for  we  have  a  delightful  party  engaged  to 
meet  us  at  the  mountains." 

"Indeed!"  said  Holden,  without  feeling  sufficient 
interest  in  this  statement  to  ask  who  were  to  make 
it  so.  And  taking  up,  the  morning's  paper,  which  lay 
at  his  feet,  he  began  to  talk  of  some  political  question. 

Andrew  followed  his  lead,  and  it  was  some  time  before 
he  asked  abruptly, 

"Holden,  where  do  you  summer  this  year?" 

' '  I  think  it  very  probable  I  shall  stay  at  home,  and  be 
quiet.  There  is  an  everlasting  amount  of  claptrap  in  all 
these  places,  and  no  satisfaction  to  be  got  out  of  them." 

"Satiety?"  drawled  Andrew  giving  him  a  keen  glance 
as  he  spoke.  "  Hosts  of  people  are  sighing  for  your 
opportunity  to  spin  over  the  world,  while  you  sit  here  in 
a  pensive  desire  for  quiet.  It  seems  to  me  this  aspiration 
of  yours  to  vegetate  away  the  summer  is  a  new  wrinkle  ?  " 

"  A  crow's  foot,  I  suppose,"  retorted  Holden  quickly, 
with  an  evident  wish  for  no  further  questioning. 

Mason  looked  at  his  friend,  handsome  and  vigorous 
in  the  prime  of  his  manhood,  and  gave  a  short,  unsatis 
fied  laugh. 

"You  had  better  come  with  us  this  summer,  Holden, 
it  will  do  you  good." 

"Thank  you  very  much,  but  I  don't  see  how  I  can." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  325 

"The  Morrises  will  be  there,"  continued  Andrew, 
"Mrs.  Bell,  and  Miss  Helen,  and  several  others." 

Jack  looked  up  eagerly  a  moment,  but  his  face  clouded 
again,  and  he  said  nothing. 

"Wonderful  opportunity  !  "  persisted  the  other.  "I'm 
advertising  clerk  of  the  affair,  you  see — fine  society, 
excellent  accommodations,  superb  scenery,  magnificent 
weather  thrown  in,  at  least  a  part  of  the  time." 

' '  Where  did  you  say  you  were  going  ?     To  the  seaside  ? " 

"No,  to  the  mountains,"  and  Andrew  repeated  the 
exact  destination,  even  to  the  hotel,  perceiving  that  this 
time  Holden  was  listening  to  him. 

' '  You'll  call  and  see  us  before  we  go  ? "  he  added, 
giving  the  date  of  their  expected  departure. 

Holden  said  he  should  be  happy  to  do  so,  and  again 
the  conversation  turned  to  other  subjects. 

But  when  Mason  had  taken  leave  with  the  remark  that 
Holden  had  better  think  it  over,  instead  of  deciding  too 
hastily  not  to  join  them,  he  came  back,  and  laying  his 
hand  upon  Jack's  arm,  said, 

"You  have  this  advantage  over  a  family  man,  Holden; 
you  may  go  to  the  north  pole,  or  the  equator,  and  no 
body  but  the  man  who  sells  you  your  ticket  will  be  the 
wiser  for  your  intentions  when  you  choose  to  say  nothing 
about  them  beforehand.  That's  a  most  useful  privilege 
sometimes.  Good  morning.  Very  hot,  to-day." 


326  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

And  the  two  walked  leisurely  toward  the  piazza,  and 
thence  to  the  front  gate,  where  they  parted. 

That  evening  Bertha  remarked  that  Cousin  Andrew's 
eyes  had  crinkled  worse  than  usual  all  day. 

The  morning  was  beautiful.  A  general  air  of  bustle 
and  expectancy  pervaded  the  house.  Andrew  alone, 
who  felt  himself  responsible  for  everything,  walked 
about  with  the  easy  gait  of  one  who  has  nothing  to  do. 
Half  an  hour  before  starting  he  came  into  the  morning- 
room. 

Kitty  was  there,  cutting  the  leaves  of  a  book  that  was 
to  beguile  the  weary  hours  of  the  journey.  She  glanced 
up  at  her  husband,  and  smiled  at  him  with  a  look  more 
of  pleading  than  mirthfulness,  a  look  that  said,  "Have 
I  not  yet  proved  my  right  to  be  taken  back  to  the  old 
place  of  trust  ?  " 

' '  What  have  you  there,  Kitty  ?  "  he  asked,  nodding 
and  smiling  as  he  passed  her  too  quickly  for  her  to 
perceive  the  expression  of  sadness  that  came  into  his 
face. 

In  a  few  moments  he  came  into  the  room  again. 

Bertha  was  carefully  rearranging  her  traveling  hat  be 
fore  the  glass. 

He  beckoned  to  her  mysteriously. 

"What  is  it?"  she  asked,  following  him  into  the  hall 
with  the  lively  curiosity  he  had  foreseen. 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  327 

' '  That  is  yours  ? "  he  asked,  pointing  to  a  mammoth 
trunk. 

"Yes." 

' '  And  this  ?  "  indicating  one  of  moderate  dimensions. 

' '  Why  yes.  You  don't  expect  me  to  go  without  any 
baggage?" 

"No,  not  by  any  means.     But  look  here — what's  this?" 

"My  shawl-strap." 

"And  this?" 

"My  bag,  of  course.  Every  lady  wants  a  traveling- 
bag." 

"And  this?" 

' '  Why,  Andrew,  that  is  a  package  of  books  from  the 
'  Franklin  Square  Library. '  I  couldn't  tell  which  one  I 
might  want  to  read  on  the  way." 

"Ye-es.  You'll  not  open  any.  And  what's  in  that 
paper  box?" 

' '  Only  a  few  little  things  I  forgot  to  have  packed  last 
night. " 

"And,  as  I  live,  a  brown  paper  parcel.  I  can  see 
it  peeping  out  from  under  your  sun-umbrella.  No,  two 
little  parcels.  What  are  they,  cookies,  or  candy?" 

"Cookies?  How  perfectly  absurd!  Is  this  what  you 
called  me  out  for?" 

Andrew  came  up  to  her  with  a  supremely  grave  face. 

"Bertha,"  he  said,  "I  assure  you,  my  dear,  this  will 


328  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

never  do.  So  much  baggage  !  Why,  everybody  would 
set  you  down  as  an  old  maid  beyond  a  question." 

Bertha's  countenance  fell.  The  very  feather  on  her 
becoming  hat  seemed  to  droop  suddenly. 

' '  What  shall  I  do  ?  "  she  inquired  piteously. 

' '  Are  your  trunks  very  full  ?  " 

' '  I  suppose  so.     Perhaps  not. " 

' '  Give  me  your  keys. " 

"She  will  do  very  well  now,"  he  said  aside  to  his  wife 
soon  after,  ' '  if  she  has  no  time  to  exercise  her  passion 
for  accumulation." 

When  the  carriage  was  at  the  door  everybody  wondered 
what  had  become  of  Jenny.  She  was  not  in  her  room; 
she  was  nowhere  to  be  found. 

At  last,  one  of  the  house-maids  delivered  a  message 
which  she  had  forgotten  in  the  general  haste.  Miss 
Grierson  went  out  not  long  ago  she  said,  and  at  the 
door  stopped  to  say  that  Mrs.  Mason  was  to  be  told  she 
had  thought  of  something  she  could  not  possibly  go  to 
the  mountains  without,  and  that  if  she  did  not  return  in 
season,  they  were  not  to  wait  a  moment  for  her,  she 
would  come  by  the  next  train;  she  was  used  to  traveling, 
and  could  find  her  way  perfectly  well. 

Kitty  turned  a  pale,   frightened  face  upon  Bertha. 

"There  is  something  wrong,"  she  cried,  M  What 
shall  we  do  ?  " 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  329 

"Nonsense.  What  is  the  use  of  always  imagining 
horrors  ? "  answered  the  other  settling  herself  comfortably 
in  the  carriage.  "Andrew  will  be  waiting  for  us  at  the 
station  with  the  checks  and  the  tickets.  What  can  you 
do  but  be  sensible,  and  know  that  Jenny  is  old  enough 
to  take  care  of  herself?" 

Kitty  yielded  to  her  fate,  but  she  did  so  with  many 
misgivings.  It  seemed  to  her  as  she  looked  back  that 
Jenny  had  been  fitful  in  mood  lately,  not  quite  the 
sunny-faced  girl  she  used  to  be.  And  if  everything  had 
been  quite  right  she  would  have  told  her,  instead  of  a 
servant,  of  the  errand  that  took  her  away  at  the  last 
moment. 

The  day  was  not,  upon  the  whole,  a  happy  one  to 
Kitty. 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon  when  the  stage  that  had 
brought  the  travelers  from  the  railway  terminus  drew 
up  at  their  hotel.  Helen  looked  out  from  it,  inter 
ested  in  the  crowd  upon  the  piazza  and  the  owners  of 
missing  baggage  who  came  forward  eager  to  find  their 
lost  traveling  companions. 

"My  trunk  is  marked  '  B.  H.,'"  said  one,  "it  looks 
like  that." 

' '  But  that  is  mine, "  cried  a  voice  from  the  stage  as 
the  first  speaker  approached. 

"Are  they  never  going  to  let  us  out  of  this  ark?" 


330  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WOK  A'. 

exclaimed  Kitty  impatiently.  "Why  don't  they  attend 
to  their  passengers  first? " 

"You're  rather  mixed  up  on  trunks  there,"  laughed 
Andrew  opening  the  door  for  himself,  and  helping  the 
others  to  follow. 

' '  Has  mine  come  yet,  it  was  marked  '  D.  N.  B. '  on 
one  side  ?  "  cried  a  familiar  voice,  and  Helen,  looking 
in  its  direction  as  she  stepped  upon  the  piazza,  saw 
the  plump,  pretty  figure  of  Mrs.  Barney. 

"My  dear,"  cried  the  latter  rushing  forward,  "we 
are  fated  to  meet  in  summer  and  winter  alike.  Such 
a  pleasure !  So  many  pleasures, "  she  added  shaking 
hands  cordially  with  all  the  party.  "Jack  ought  to 
know." 

' '  He  does  know, "  said  the  person  in  question,  look 
ing  over  her  shoulder,  "and  he  appreciates  the  kind 
ness  that  is  desirous  to  make  him  a  sharer  in  every 
favor  of  fortune." 

So  Jack  is  again  holding  Miss  Bell's  hand,  and  look 
ing  into  her  face,  though  his  expression,  and  his  words, 
all  the  world  about  them  may  see  and  hear. 

"You  are  well?"  he  asks,  and  that  he  does  not  re 
lease  her  hand  until  she  has  answered  the  question,  is, 
she  understands,  because  he  has  so  much  sympathy 
with  the  mental  suffering  he  knows  she  has  endured. 

Mrs.    Barney    quite    forgot    her    missing    trunk,    and 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  331 

moved  from  one  to  the  other  in  a  flutter  of  enjoy 
ment 

"Now,  this  is  what  I  should  call  jolly,  if  I  used 
slang,"  she  cried. 

''You  will  hear  plenty  of  it  for  the  next  few  weeks, 
I'll  engage,"  said  Kitty  as  she  passed  into  the  house. 

She  had  taken  in  the  whole  thing  at  a  glance,  and 
had  flashed  at  her  husband,  unobserved,  a  swift  look 
of  angry  suspicion.  All  summer  she  had  been  doing 
her  level  best.  Was  this  the  way  he  repaid  her?  He 
had  taken  down  the  flag  of  truce.  This  revelation,  and 
her  anxiety  about  Jenny,  too,  had  fallen  upon  her  in 
one  day  in  the  place  to  which  she  had  come  for  rest 
and  pleasure.  She  went  upstairs  to  her  room  with  a 
sense  of  injury  in  her  heart,  and  an  access  of  dignity 
in  her  bearing. 

Holden  looked  after  Mason  as  the  latter  stood  at  the 
desk  in  the  office  entering  the  names  of  his  party  in 
the  visitor's  book. 

"He  has  never  hinted  that  he  looked  for  me  there," 
he  thought.  ' '  Mason  is  a  clever  fellow,  I'll  follow 
his  cue — 'Silence  is  golden.'  It  could  not  have  been 
managed  so  well  if  Aunt  Delia  had  been  in  Lowton. 
How  delighted  she  was  when  I  swooped  down  upon 
her  in  her  'rural  retreat'  as  she  calls  it,  and  brought 
her  up  here." 


332  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Then  his  thoughts  went  back  to  Helen. 

"How  kindly  her  mother  greeted  me!"  he  mused. 
"I  suppose  she  has  told  her.  But  she  is  very  pale, 
although  the  surprise  of  seeing  me  brought  a  flush  to 
her  face  for  a  moment.  I  know  that  I  can  gain  noth 
ing  by  this,  except  the  delight  of  seeing  her  and  being 
with  her.  I  will  have  all  of  that  I  can.  And,  perhaps — " 

But  what  was  to  have  followed  the  ' '  perhaps "  never 
transpired,  for  Andrew  came  up,  and  Holden  said  to 
him, 

' '  I  thought  Miss  Grierson  was  to  accompany  you  ?  " 

"Ye-es,"  answered  Mason,  "she's  coming.  Some 
thing  detained  her,  and  she  will  be  here  by  the  next 
train.  But  if  she  should  not  come  to-night,  don't  no 
tice  her  absence  to  my  wife;  she  is  very  anxious  about 
her  already." 

"Certainly  not.  I  think  it  would  be  pleasanter  for 
her  to  take  the  early  train  to-morrow;  this  next  one  is 
so  often  detained." 

' '  Ye-es.  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  it  were  pleasanter, " 
said  Andrew.  "And  Aunt  Bertha's  house  is  still  open." 


CHAPTER   XIX. 

JENNY  GRIERSON  had  no  intention  of  spending 
that  night  in  Lowton.  She  proposed  to  join  her 
friends  by  the  next  train,  as  she  had  sent  word  to  her 
aunt  The  only  thing  about  which  Kitty  had  any  rea 
son  to  feel  anxious  was  the  way  in  which  she  intended 
to  do  it. 

When  she  left  Mrs.  Edgerly's  house  her  errand  took 
her  directly  to  the  station  of  a  different  road  from  that 
on  which  her  friends  were  so  soon  to  travel. 

The  train  was  to  leave  in  a  few  moments.  She  bought 
her  ticket,  and  stepped  on  board. 

Two  stations  beyond  Lowton  she  was  joined  by  a 
gentleman.  He  was  handsomely  dressed,  and  carried 
himself  jauntily.  He  was  quite  the  same  Mr.  Knight 
of  the  previous  winter,  except  that  now  there  was  a  joy- 
ousness  in  his  face. 

"How  did  you  manage  it?"  he  asked,  seating  him 
self  beside  her. 


334  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Very  easily,"  answered  Jenny.  "I  only  wish  I 
were  as  certain  of  being  wise  as  I  was  skillful." 

' '  Can  you  doubt  that  ? "  he  whispered  with  a  tender 
glance.  "In  two  hours,  little  one,  you  will  have  set 
tled  the  question  to  the  life-long  satisfaction  of  us 
both." 

The  girl  colored,  and  turned  her  face  toward  the 
window. 

' '  Everything  is  all  ready  ?  " 

"Quite  ready,  and  waiting  for  you.  If  one  could 
ever  love  waiting,  it  would  be  for  you." 

"I'm  afraid  somebody  will  hear  you,"  she  said,  glan 
cing  about  her  shyly. 

' '  I  was  going  to  say  '  I  don't  care. '  But  if  it  troubles 
you,  we  will  talk  only  prosaic  common  sense  for  the 
present " 

"Do  you  know,"  she  said,  "I  like  my  own  name  so 
much  better,  I  had  a  cry  last  night  at  the  thought  of 
giving  it  up?" 

' ' '  Day '  is  not  bad,  darling.  Very  many  great  and 
good  things  have  been  due  to  the  days." 

"I  shall  teach  you  to  stop  punning." 

An  ominous  flash  shot  from  the  young  man's  eyes, 
and  then  with  a  face  all  smiles  he  turned  to  his  com 
panion. 

"You  were  angry,"  she  began,    "because  I   said    'I 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  335 

shall  teach  you.'  But  people  always  must  teach  each 
other,  if  they  are  to  live  happily  together." 

"Of  course,"  he  answered,  adding  hastily,  "I  am 
no  longer  '  Detective  Day, '  love.  I  have  gone  into  bus 
iness,  as  you  insisted,  and  am  now  one  of  the  firm  of 
'  Wesley  and  Day. '  That  sounds  well. " 

"Yes." 

After  this  answer  she  was  silent  a  few  moments,  evi 
dently  absorbed  in  her  thoughts,  though  the  young  man 
was  talking  to  her. 

"You  know  you  will  meet  Helen  Bell  there?"  she 
asked  abruptly  breaking  in  upon  what  he  was  saying. 

' '  Disagreeable.  But  we  shall  get  over  that.  She  will 
say  nothing  about  it;  nor  your  Aunt  Kitty,  you  may  be 
sure.  Does  Bertha  know  ?  " 

Jenny  would  have  found  it  difficult  to  say  why  it  struck 
her  as  presumption  in  this  man,  whom  she  was  soon  to 
make  her  husband,  to  speak  of  her  aunt  and  friend  in 
this  familiar  way. 

Kitty  was  right  in  finding  her  niece  moody  at  times. 
Latterly,  Jenny  had  faintly  perceived  in  her  lover  what 
Holden  found  in  him  when  off  duty,  what  Helen  had 
always  recognized.  Probably,  he  did  not  realize  the 
necessity  of  keeping  up  all  the  manner  and  surface  in 
stincts  of  Mr.  Knight  with  a  girl  who  was  enough  in  love 
with  him  to  promise  to  marry  him  clandestinely  because 


336  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

she  knew  that  her  friends  would  not  consent  to  their 
union.  Probably,  too,  the  closer  intimacy  of  an  engage 
ment  made  the  thing  much  more  difficult,  if  not  impos 
sible.  He  had  proposed  the  elopement  only  in  the 
previous  interview,  and  had  urged,  hurried,  and  over- 
persuaded  Jenny,  who  was  here  now  in  accordance  with 
her  hasty  promise;  yet,  who,  as  she  said,  more  than 
doubted  the  wisdom  of  the  step.  She  certainly  intended 
to  marry  him,  but  there  was  no  reason  why  she  should  do 
it  immediately. 

"Rufus,"  she  said  softly  after  another  pause,  "let 
me  go  on  to  Aunt  Kitty  just  as  I  am,  and  come  with  me 
if  you  like,  or  leave  me  at  the  branch  road.  Let  us  wait 
a  while  to  marry,  we  are  both  young.  The  more  I  think 
of  it,  the  less  I  like  to  do  this  secretly.  Perhaps  papa 
would  be  willing  after  a  time,  when  you  get  well  estab 
lished  in  business." 

Day  had  his  own  reasons  for  knowing  that  it  would  be 
some  time  before  he  was  well  established  in  business.  His 
face  darkened  in  an  instant. 

He  drew  away  from  Jenny,  and  looking  at  her  de 
fiantly,  said, 

' '  If  you  are  tired  of  me,  Miss  Grierson,  say  so;  but  I 
am  not  to  be  played  with.  If  you  refuse  me  so  insult 
ingly  now,  I  shall  understand  it  will  be  forever." 

"Played  with!"  echoed  the  girl  tremblingly.      "How 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  337 

can  you  speak  of  such  a  thing  ?  Haven't  I  consented 
that  it  shall  be  as  you  say?  Only,  I  think — " 

But  Knight  bent  over,  and  whispered  caressing  words 
into  her  ear,  and  Jenny's  doubts  were  at  least  silenced. 

Meanwhile,  the  train  was  bringing  them  nearer  to  their 
Rubicon. 

' '  I  wish  it  had  been  somebody  else,  not  you,  who  had 
had  to  do  with  Helen,"  she  said  after  a  time. 

"Then  I  should  never  have  met  you." 

"I  don't  mean  that  part  of  it,"  she  answered  with  a 
bright  smile;  "but  I  don't  like  to  think  of  your  having 
had  anything  to  do  with  bringing  pain  to  a  person  like 
her." 

Jenny  had  heard  from  him  the  account  of  his  dealings 
with  Miss  Bell,  no  doubt  somewhat  modified.  It^was 
open  to  question  whether  he  would  have  tried  to  many 
Miss  Grierson  in  an  assumed  character,  but  Kitty  had 
left  him  no  choice  in  the  matter. 

"Business  is  business,  love,"  he  said,  "and  I've  seen 
better  persons." 

"Never  mind  about  saying  things  now.  Aren't  you 
sorry  yourself? " 

' '  Very  sorry — that  I  couldn't  bring  the  business  to  a 
successful  termination.  I  should  like  to  have  made  out 
my  case." 

"What!" 


338  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"Yes,"  he  answered  smiling  with  the  superiority  of 
wisdom  at  her  consternation."  "It  would  have  helped 
me  very  much  to  have  had  my  name  brought  forward  in 
a  case  in  high  life,  and  Miss  Bell  is  well  connected.  It 
would  have  made  quite  a  stir,  if  that  officious  Holdcn 
had  not  broken  it  up." 

' '  Did  you  see  through  it  before  ? " 

"No,  indeed;  it  must  have  been  a  kind  of  magic  that 
made  him  ferret  out  the  truth.  But  I  wish  he'd  been  in 
Jericho  first." 

"Would  you  have  liked  Helen  convicted  of  an  attempt 
to  poison  ? " 

"She  would  not  have  been.  The  truth  always  leaks 
out  after  a  while." 

"But  the  notoriety  of  it  would  have  clung  to  her  all 
her  life,"  said  Jenny;  "it  would  have  been  dreadful!" 

"Not  so  very;  and  I  couldn't  help  that  if  it  would. 
You  and  I  live  in  a  work-a-day  world,  my  love,  and  you 
will  find  that  if  a  woman  has  time  in  it  to  sentimentalize, 
a  man  must  look  out  for  himself.  So,  though  I  shall  be 
as  deferential  as  you  like  to  Miss  Bell,  I  shall  secretly 
wish  all  the  same  that  I  could  have  made  more  out  of 
her.  For  instance,  supposing  she  had  really  tried  that 
little  game  on  your  aunt.  It  did  not  succeed,  you  see, 
so  Mrs.  Mason  would  have  been  safe;  as  to  Miss  Bell,  it 
would  be  the  old  proverb,  Suave  qui pent;  and  as  to  me, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  339 

pet,  I  should  have  done  something  worth  while,  and  have 
been  able  to  make  life  pleasanter  to  my  little  girl.  Do 
you  realize  that  we're  almost  there?  Only  three  stations 
more. " 

He  looked  at  her  with  unfeigned  admiration  and  sat 
isfaction.  She  was  very  pale,  and  he  saw  that  he  had 
said  too  much  in  regard  to  Helen.  But  he  was  to  all 
intents  at  the  goal  of  his  hopes  now,  and  it  did  not  make 
so  much  difference.  He  would  be  more  careful  next 
time. 

He  talked  on,  trying  to  banish  from  her  mind  the 
recollection  of  his  too  plain  speaking. 

She  was  silent  for  some  time,  when  suddenly  she  in 
terrupted  him  to  ask  for  a  pencil  and  a  scrap  of  paper. 

' '  What  for  ?  "  he  said  handing  her  the  pencil,  and  div 
ing  into  different  pockets  in  search  of  the  paper. 

"I  want  it,"  she  answered  simply. 

He  watched  her  as  she  wrote.  She  did  not  seem  quite 
like  the  dimpled,  blushing  little  Jenny  whom  he  had 
joined  two  hours  before.  There  was  a  resolute  look  in 
her  face  now,  and  her  color  had  quite  gone. 

"Plenty  of  grit  there,"  he  mused,  leaning  back  in  a 
satisfied  survey  of  his  prize.  "She  is  nerving  herself 
for  the  coup  d'  etat. " 

When  she  had  finished  writing  he  held  out  his  hand 
for  the  paper,  in  a  half-playful,  half-masterful  way,  which 


340  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

grew  stern  for  a  moment  as  she  slipped  the  note  into  her 
pocket,  and  quietly  returned  the  pencil  to  him. 

"Oh,"  he  said  breathlessly.  Then,  with  a  laugh, 
"What,  Jenny,  beginning  with  your  secrets  already? 
I  shan't  allow  that." 

But  she  did  not  smile  back.  They  were  coming  into 
the  station,  and  as  the  train  slackened  she  occupied  her 
self  in  preparing  to  leave  the  car. 

"The  minister's  house  is  a  very  short  distance  from 
here,"  he  said,  putting  her  into  the  hack  hastily,  "and 
we  have  a  full  half  hour  before  the  train  starts — plenty 
of  time  to  make  you  into  my  charming  Day  lily." 

The  girl  faltered,  and  drew  back  an  instant,  but  the 
driver  stood  at  the  door  of  his  hack,  and  behind  was  her 
lover  helping  her  into  the  vehicle,  and  waiting  to  spring 
in  after  her. 

"How  frightened  she  is,  poor  little  thing  1 "  said  the 
young  man  to  himself,  watching  Jenny,  who  during  the 
drive  did  not  speak  one  word. 

Arrived  at  the  minister's,  Day  ordered  the  hack  to  wait 
for  them,  and  went  into  the  house  with  his  companion. 

Mr.  Dunton  had  been  expecting  them.  He  was  in  his 
garden.  His  wife  offered  to  find  him. 

"Let  me  go  with  you,"  cried  the  young  man,  "then  I 
can  say  what  is  necessary  to  him  as  we  are  walking  in  to 
gether,  and  we  shall  not  lose  time." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  341 

He  got  up  as  he  spoke  and  moved  across  the  room 
restlessly,  following  the  lady  into  the  garden. 

Miss  Dunton,  a  pretty  girl  of  fifteen,  remained  in  the 
room. 

A  look  of  relief  came  into  Jenny's  face  as  she  watched 
the  young  man's  retreating  figure. 

As  soon  as  he  was  out  of  sight  she  rose  hastily,  and 
came  close  up  to  the  young  lady. 

In  a  very  few  moments  Mrs.   Dunton  re-entered. 

"Why,"  she  began,  and  stopped  abruptly,  reading  be 
wilderment  and  anxiety  in  her  daughter's  countenance. 
•  Day  followed  with  the  minister.  He,  too,  glanced 
about  the  room  in  astonishment,  then,  catching  an  ex 
pression  which  passed  between  the  two  women,  he  crossed 
the  room  with  hurried  steps  and  looked  out  of  the  win 
dow,  a  sudden  strange  sinking  at  his  heart. 

"Where  is  the  hack?"  he  cried,  turning  sharply  upon 
the  girl. 

"She  went  off  in  it,  sir,  directly  you  went  into  the  gar 
den,  and  she  begged  me  to  give  this  to  you." 

It  was  the  paper  she  held  in  her  hand.  He  recognized 
the  note  Jenny  had  been  writing  in  the  train. 

"Forgive  me,"  it  ran,  "I  dare  not  do  this  so  hastily, 
and  you  have  just  told  me  there  is  no  other  way.  I  am 
afraid  of  a  man  that  must  look  out  so  carefully  for  himself 


342  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK:. 

in  the  teeth  of  other  people's  well-being — especially,  wo 
men's;  I  think  some  day  he  might  run  athwart  mine. 
I  shall  always  remember  you,  but  I  dare  not  marry 
you. 

"JEXXY." 

"There  will  be  no  wedding  to-day,"  he  announced 
with  a  hard,  dry  laugh;  "the  bride  is  missing,  you  see. 
I  did  not  intend  to  trouble  you  so  unnecessarily.  Good 
morning. " 

He  bowed  himself  out  with  another  low,  unnatural 
laugh,  and  took  his  way  to  the  station. 

But  he  did  not  find  Jenny  there. 

She  had  asked  the  hackman  how  soon  the  next  train 
in  the  direction  she  was  to  take  left  the  place.  "In  three 
or  four  minutes,"  he  told  her. 

' '  Double  fare  if  I  catch  it, "  she  answered. 

She  did  catch  it,  and  when  the  young  man  reached  the 
station  she  was  already  on  her  way,  finding  that  by  wait 
ing  at  a  different  place  she  could  still  make  the  right  con 
nections,  and  reach  her  friends  that  night. 

The  next  morning  she  did  not  appear  at  breakfast,  and 
later  sent  a  message  requesting  Helen  to  come  to  her 
room. 

Her  eyes  were  swollen  with  weeping,  and  she  looked 
feverish  and  miserable. 


A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK.  343 

"I  am  afraid  you  have  taken  cold,"  said  Helen 
anxiously. 

"No,  but  that  is  as  good  an  excuse  as  any.  I  sent  for 
you  to  tell  you  what  is  really  the  matter  with  me.  It  is 
mental  suffering.  I  have  been  thinking  them  all  over, 
and  I  decided  upon  you.  Will  you  be  a  good,  patient 
father-confessor  ? " 

"I  know  enough  about  pain  to  have  learned  something 
of  patience,  and  to  be  very  sorry  for  you,"  said  Helen 
tenderly.  "I  will  give  the  best  advice  I  can." 

"I  don't  think  there  is  any  room  for  advice,  the  thing 
is  all  over.  But  I  want  you  to  tell  me  if  you  don't  think 
I  was  right." 

And  Jenny  gave  the  history  of  the  previous  day. 

"Aunt  Kitty  suspects  me  I  think,"  she  finished,  "for 
last  night  she  came  running  out  of  the  house  the  mo 
ment  the  stage  stopped,  and  asked  so  anxiously  at  the 
window  if  I  were  there.  Then,  when  she  found  me,  she 
explained  her  eagerness  by  saying  how  afraid  she  was  lest 
I  should  lose  my  way  in  the  darkness;  you  know,  it  really 
was  very  late.  But  I  am  sure  she  will  say  nothing  unless 
to  Uncle  Andrew,  and  nobody  else  dreams  of  it.  Tell 
me,  Helen,  do  you  think  they  do  ?  Did  you  ? "  she 
added  suddenly. 

"Yes,  I  felt  uneasy.  But  it  never  entered  Bertha's 
mind,  or  we  should  certainly  have  heard  of  it" 


344  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

"I  remembered  yesterday  what  a  very  wise  lady  told 
me  once,"  continued  Jenny.  "'My  dear/  she  said, 
'when  you  marry,  you  may  be  sure,  after  the  novelty 
has  worn  off,  that  your  husband  will  treat  you  in  exactly 
the  same  way  that  he  treats  other  people. ' " 

' '  He  may  have  a  little  more  affection, "  said  Helen, 
"  but  so  far  as  the  instincts  of  chivalry  are  concerned,  he 
will  feel  the  same  toward  you  as  toward  other  people — no 
more,  or  less." 

In  speaking,  she  seemed  to  forget  her  hearer  in  some 
recollection  or  suggestion  her  own  words  called  up;  for 
she  sat  meditating,  while  a  wistful  look  came  into  her 
eyes,  and  a  smile  that  was  almost  sadness  was  on  her 
lips. 

Jenny  watched  her  in  silence  for  a  time. 

"Don't  you  think  I  was  right?"  she  asked  at  length. 

"  Perfectly  right — not  to  marry  him,  feeling  as  you  did 
— but  wrong  ever  to  have  consented  to  this." 

' '  But,  you  see,   the  leaving  him  is  forever. " 

' '  I  am  glad  of  that,  dear  child,  and  so  will  you  be 
before  long." 

By  this  time  Jenny's  face  was  buried  in  her  pillows. 

"I  suppose  it's  only  a  fascination,"  she  sobbed;  "but 
I  know  I  never  shall  be  glad,  and  you  don't  have  one 
thought  of  pity  for  him.  It  sounds  egotistical,  but  he  did 
care  about  me.  He  will  take  it  hard,  I  know.'' 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  345 

"I  am  sorry  for  him,  Jenny,  but  I  should  have  been 
much  more  sorry  for  you  in  the  other  event." 

"  It's  all  Aunt  Kitty's  doing,"  cried  the  girl,  lifting  her 
tear-stained  face  in  sudden  anger.  "I  should  never  have 
seen  him  if  she  had  not  behaved  so  badly  to  you." 

Again  the  little  face  went  down  among  the  pillows. 

' '  Comfort  me,  Helen  ! "  she  said  between  her  sobs. 
"Can't  you  comfort  me?" 

Helen  soothed  her  as  well  as  she  could,  being  all  the 
while  inwardly  too  thankful  for  the  turn  the  affair  had 
taken,  not  to  remember  that  Jenny's  grief  would  probably 
be  short,  and  her  cause  of  congratulation  life-long.  She 
forebore  to  speak  too  plainly  of  the  young  man's  charac 
ter.  This  was  not  merely  to  avoid  rousing  the  girl's  loy 
alty  to  him;  but,  also,  because  she  herself  was  unwilling 
to  speak  ill  of  one  who  was  already  suffering. 

She  hoped,  and  believed,  that  judicious  help  in  self-re 
straint,  and  plenty  of  diversion  would  work  a  complete 
cure  in  the  girl. 

When  Jenny  grew  quieter,  her  friend  reminded  her 
that  no  one  must  know  all  this,  and  that  she  ought  to 
come  forward  as  soon  as  possible.  She  must  certainly 
make  her  appearance  at  dinner.  Jenny  readily  promised 
this. 

As  Helen  came  down-stairs,  she  met  Mr.  Holden  in 
the  hall. 


346  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  Have  you  been  sight-seeing  this  morning  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"No.  I  have  been  no  further  than  the  piazza.  Do 
you  call  that  going  out  of  the  house  ? " 

"Hardly.  There  is  a  magnificent  view  a  very  short 
distance  from  here  that  I  am  sure  you  would  enjoy." 

' '  I  am  very  sure  I  should. " 

The  two  were  moving  toward  the  open  door  as  they 
spoke. 

"Mrs.  Barney,"  said  Helen  stepping  out  upon  the 
piazza,  "will  you  come  to  see  a  magnificent  view  Mr. 
Holden  kindly  offers  to  show  us?  Mamma,  I  can 
count  upon  your  readiness.  Mrs.  Edgerly  is  not  here, 
I  see.  Miss  Morris,  and  Bertha,  and  Mr.  Van  Huyden 
will  you  not  come  ?  And  Mr.  Mason  ?  " 

' '  Are  you  not  going  to  invite  me,  too  ? "  asked  Kitty 
coming  through  the  hall  at  the  moment,  and  speaking 
over  Helen's  shoulder. 

"Not  until  I  see  you,"  she  answered  lightly,  adding 
courteously,  "You  will  come?" 

"Let  me  walk  with  you,  my  dear  Miss  Bell,"  cried 
Mrs.  Barney,  "unless  you  prefer  some  of  the  younger 
people. " 

Helen  smiled,  and  in  answer  laid  a  hand  upon  her 
arm.  Holden  walked  beside  them. 

Bertha  followed   with   Miss   Morris,   and   her  cousin, 


A    LAZY  MAWS    WORK.  347 

Mr.  Van  Huyden.  Mason  did  not  go,  and  for  a  time 
Mr.  Dewey  honored  Mrs.  Bell  and  Kitty  with  his  so 
ciety;  but  at  last  opportunity  favored  him  with  a  place 
at  Miss  Morris's  side,  and  he  devoted  himself  to  her 
assiduously. 

"A  more  absurd  man  never  lived,"  laughed  Kitty 
to  her  companion.  "There  never  was  a  creature  so 
interpenetrated  with  the  idea  of  woman's  inferiority  to 
the  lords  of  creation.  Yet  there  is  not  another  silly 
mortal  more  quickly  carried  away  by  the  sight  of  a 
pretty  face  than  he  is.  Although  he  has  a  great  regard 
for  solid  charms  as  well.  He  has  been  dancing  attend 
ance  upon  Bertha  a  long  time,  but  he  can  never  help 
chass6-ing  off  with  every  new  face.  Bertha  does  give 
him  a  snub  once  in  a  while,  which  I  hope  is  the  pre 
cursor  of  the  final  one.  She  has  had,  and  will  have, 
much  better  opportunities.  She  likes  Mr.  Holden  very 
much  as  a  friend,"  continued  the  speaker,  "but  he 
was  seriously  interested  in  her  several  months  ago;  and 
probably  would  be  to-day  if  he  found  encouragement; 
although,  with  all  my  real  regard  for  Mr.  Holden,  I 
have  noticed  he  is  inclined  to  fickleness.  Perhaps  this 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at  in  a  very  wealthy  man  who 
knows  that  a  wide  range  of  choice  is  open  to  him. " 

There  were  many  walks  like  this  in  the  following 
days,  and  there  were  excursions  to  the  surrounding 


348  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

places  of  interest.  Nobody  thought  of  anything  but 
amusement,  even  Helen  seemed  much  less  busy  than 
usual.  Holden  was  a  great  deal  in  her  society.  He 
was  always  ready  to  join  in  the  general  conversation 
when  she  was  present,  and  it  frequently  happened  that 
after  a  while  one  and  another  of  the  party  strolled  away 
or  began  to  talk  to  new  acquaintances  upon  other  sub 
jects;  so  that  the  group  of  which  they  formed  a  part 
was  small,  or  sometimes  it  fell  out  that  they  had  the 
conversation  quite  to  themselves. 

Jenny  was  very  brave.  She  took  her  share  in  every 
thing,  and  if  at  times  she  was  more  talkative  and  gay 
than  she  used  to  be,  she  made  up  for  this  in  her  own 
room.  The  piano  was  a  great  solace  to  her,  as  well 
as  a  pleasure  to  others,  and  she  played  a  good  deal. 
Mr.  Van  Huyden  would  listen  to  her  by  the  hour 
together;  he  professed  himself  very  fond  of  classical 
music,  and  Jenny  did  her  best  to  gratify  him  in  this 
respect. 

One  evening  she  had  been  playing  an  etude  of  Chopin's 
to  a  circle  of  admiring  listeners,  when  Andrew  strolled 
in  from  the  piazza. 

"This  is  not  your  only  audience,  Jenny,"  he  said 
in  a  voice  subdued  so  as  not  to  reach  beyond  the  room; 
"there  is  a  group  of  the  natives  standing  under  the 
window,  drinking  in  the  harmony.  I  kept  very  still, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  349 

for  I  thought  a  little  disinterested  criticism  might  be 
an  excellent  thing  for  you. " 

"Well,  and  what  did  they  say?"  cried  a  chorus  of 
eager  half  whispers. 

"One  man  spoke  in  a  mystified  tone  to  a  companion: 
'That  gal's  been  playin'  ha-alf  an  hour/  he  said,  'and 
she  hasn't  played  a  single  toon  yet.'  'Oh/ retorted  the 
other  sententiously,  'them's  pieces  without  toons.'" 

"We  must  seem  a  very  strange  set  to  the  natives," 
said  Mr.  Dewey  as  the  general  laugh  subsided. 

" Ye-es,"  answered  Mason;  "you  see,  they  have  a 
power  of  just  criticism. " 

' '  I  wonder  what  the  general  effect  of  summer  boarders 
will  be  upon  country  places, "  remarked  Kitty.  ' '  We 
bring  in  so  many  new  ideas  and  ways." 

"As  to  the  ways,"  said  her  husband,  "the  country 
people  might  adopt  some  of  these  with  advantage,  to  be 
sure,  and  perhaps  the  influence  of  the  mountains  will 
keep  them  above  the  follies.  But  about  our  bringing 
new  ideas  up  here,  I'm  not  so  clear  of  that,  unless  you 
mean  ideas  about  frills  and  such  things,"  and  Andrew 
nodded  his  head  toward  the  stream  of  richly  dressed 
promenaders  on  the  sidewalks. 

"You  seem  to  have  no  liking  for  grand  toilets," 
laughed  Mr.  Van  Huyden. 

"Ye-es,"  said  Andrew,    "I  admire  them.     But  they 


350  A    LAZY   MAN'S    WORK. 

don't  show  off  well  by  starlight;  and  then  these  purple 
shades  of  the  mountains  are  very  trying  to  them.  We 
are  so  fond  of  art  in  America,  and  we  spend  so  much 
breath  on  its  culture,  that  it's  a  little  discouraging  to 
think  we  don't  perceive  the  picturesque  ought  to  come 
into  play  here,  instead  of  the  elaborate.  We  carry  our 
city  dress  and  city  airs  about  with  us  everywhere,  as 
the  turtles  do  their  houses.  Now,  if  our  souls  were  in 
stinct  with  artistic  perceptions,  or  quickened  by  artistic 
culture,  we  should  be  trying  here  to  get  ourselves  up  as 
picturesque  accessories  of  mountain  scenery." 

Holden,  coming  into  the  house  with  Mason,  had 
taken  his  place  beside  the  window  and  behind  Helen's 
chair. 

"That  is  not  all  the  preparation  one  needs  for  com 
prehending  what  the  hills  have  to  declare  to  us,"  he  said, 
bending  forward  a  little,  and  speaking  in  a  tone  that  was 
meant  for  her  alone. 

"No,"  she  said  turning  her  face  up  to  answer  him, 
'"but  it  would  be  more  of  a  help  to  deeper  perceptions 
than  we  realize.  I  believe  that  outward  circumstances 
often  lead  to  states  of  mind,  as  truly  as  it  is  the  other 
way. " 

' '  You  ought  to  know, "  he  answered  softly,  ' '  for  you 
have  always,  everywhere,  the  effect  of  simplicity  and 
picturesqueness. " 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  351 

"I  have  the  reality  of  simplicity  in  attire,"  she  said 
lightly;  "but  with  me,  this  is  not  a  fair  test  of  choice, 
for  I  have  not  the  money  to  do  otherwise  if  I  would. 
So,  after  all,  you  can  tell  nothing  about  me,  Mr. 
Holden." 

She  glanced  up  at  him  smilingly  as  she  spoke.  But 
in  a  moment  her  eyes  fell  again,  for  the  look  that  had 
met  hers  was  like  one  she  had  seen  months  before  during 
a  swift  gliding  between  snowy,  moonlit  fields. 

"Mr.  Holden,"  cried  Kitty,  "Andrew  has  been  criti 
cising  those  poor  pedestrians  so  mercilessly,  that  I  feel 
as  if  my  duty  in  the  matter  were  to  go  and  join  them, 
to  tiy  to  make  amends.  Won't  you  come  with  me?" 

Jack  consented  readily.  He  knew  that  Helen  liked 
the  moonlight.  If  she  would  come,  too,  he  would  cheer 
fully  be  at  Mrs.  Mason's  service  for  as  long  a  time  as  she 
desired. 

But  Miss  Bell  declined  going  out  that  evening,  and 
throughout  Mrs.  Mason's  brilliant  talk  Jack  occupied 
himself  with  wondering  if  Helen  were  offended  with  him 
for  his  boldness. 

The  next  morning,  soon  after  breakfast,  Helen  walked 
off  by  herself  into  some  very  inviting  woods  that  she  had 
seen  from  her  window.  She  was  intending  to  sit  down 
for  a  time  under  one  of  the  great  trees,  where  the  still 
ness  and  beauty  would  refresh  her. 


352  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

But  before  she  had  gone  far  enough  for  this,  she  heard 
footsteps  coming  up  a  path  that  led  into  hers,  and  in 
another  moment  Mr.  Holden  was  speaking  to  her. 

After  returning  his  greeting,  she  moved  aside  to  let 
him  pass.  But  he  stood  also  as  she  waited,  and  when 
she  moved  on  again,  walked  beside  her. 

"It  is  much  pleasanter  here  than  on  the  piazza,"  he 
began. 

"I  think  the  piazza  is  delightful,"  she  answered. 

"Yet  you  prefer  this,   or  you  would  not  come." 

' '  I  surely  do  on  such  a  morning. " 

"The  ladies  seemed  to  be  enjoying  themselves  in  the 
parlor,"  he  said;  "  I  looked  in  as  I  came  by."  He  did 
not  add  that  he  had  done  so  to  make  sure  it  was  really 
Helen  whom  he  had  seen  in  the  distance. 

His  listener  glanced  at  him  with  an  amused  expression. 

"Were  they  talking  very  confidentially?"  she  asked. 

"It  strikes  me  they  were,"  returned  Holden,  mak 
ing  a  pretense  of  being  interested  in  her  answer  to 
study  her  face  attentively.  But  beyond  this  he  was  dis 
cretion  itself,  for  he  had  resolved  to  be  sure  not  to 
offend  her  to-day. 

"Then  they  were  probably  discussing  the  subject  of 
servants,"  she  said,  "and  illustrating  it  by  a  series  of  re 
markable  examples  of  stupidity  and  total  depravity.  Only 
think  what  a  misfortune  perfect  attendance  would  be.  It 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  353 

would  cause  the  loss  of  a  theme  upon  which  anybody 
can  be  eloquent." 

' '  You  are  severe. " 

"I  suppose  I  am;  but  one  gets  impatient  with  any 
subject  that  goes  by  a  crank.  I  can  sympathize  with 
a  burst  of  hearty  indignation  once  in  a  while.  I  have 
felt  that  myself,  especially  one  day  when  an  orderly 
Biddy  of  ours  laid  together  some  paintings  I  had  stand 
ing  about  to  dry,  and  put  them  to  press  under  my 
paint-box." 

Holden  laughed  with  her  at  the  recollection. 

"But  afterwards,"  continued  Helen,  "we  had  to  give 
up  our  Biddy  for  a  while.  It  came  hard  times,  and 
I  found  that  occasional  mistakes  are  much  easier  to  put 
up  with  than  having  to  do  all  one's  own  drudgery.  I 
think  people  often  make  too  much  of  things,  and  do 
not  make  enough  allowance  for  the  difference  between 
education  and  ignorance." 

"  You  ought  not  to  have  drudgery  to  do,"  he  said 
half  unconsciously  with  a  look  at  her  which  she  did 
not  see  as  she  stooped  to  pick  a  wildflower  in  her 
path. 

"Oh;  I  have  not  now — in  that  way,"  she  answered, 
adding  after  a  moment,  "but,  Mr.  Holden,  I  should 
be  good  for  nothing  if  I  were  not  willing  to  submit 
to  drudgery  in  my  own  work.  Nobody  truly  cares  for 


354  A    LAZY  MAN'S  'WORK. 

a  thing  who  is  not  willing  to  labor  for  it.  Suddenly, 
her  earnest  tone  changed,  and  she  said  lightly,  "It 
is  the  only  ladder  to  success;  and,  as  I  have  told  you 
before,  I  am  fond  of  success." 

"Yes5"  answered  Holden,  "it's  safe  to  infer  that 
one  is  fond  of  the  things,  or  the  people,  one  works 
very  hard  for." 

Helen  stood  breathless  an  instant  in  the  clutches  of 
some  startling  thought. 

"You  need  not  lay  such  stress  upon  success,"  he 
went  on,  "for  I  know  that  the  work  itself  is  very 
dear  to  you." 

She  recovered  her  composure  instantly.  He  had  for 
gotten  the  service  he  had  once  rendered  her.  She  smiled, 
and  he  saw  that  the  eyes  turned  upon  his  face  were  full 
of  her  subject,  not  of  himself. 

"Work  was  an  ordinance  of  Eden,  you  remember; 
it  is  only  the  thorns  and  briers  that  have  come  in  after 
ward.  " 

"Yes,"  he  answered. 

Helen  bent  her  head  over  the  purple  asters  in  her 
hand.  She  was  still  remembering  how  her  companion 
had  labored  for  a  cause  in  which  she  was  concerned, 
and  remembering  how  plainly  he  had  told  her  that 
the  interest  which  prompted  his  action  was  desire  for 
justice.  She  believed  this  all  the  more  firmly  because 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK,  355 

his  uncomplimentary  words  had  been  inadvertently  spoken, 
and  she  had  seen  that  he  would  gladly  have  recalled  them 
instantly,  could  he  have  done  so. 

"You  have  a  great  love  for  realities,  Mr.  Holden," 
she  said,  after  a  silence. 

"When  did  you  find  that  out?"  he  asked  earnestly. 

She  hesitated  a  moment,  for  she  could  not  say, 
"When  I  heard  your  answer  to  Kitty  Mason  concern 
ing  me." 

"One  learns  things  in  seeing  a  good  deal  of  people," 
she  answered  at  last. 

"I  think  that  depends  upon  circumstances.  We  may 
learn  more  of  another's  character  in  a  moment  under 
some  stress  of  joy  or  pain,  than  ordinarily  in  years." 

As  he  spoke,  he  again  saw  Helen  lifting  her  head 
from  the  sofa,  pale  and  horror-struck  with  the  thought 
of  what  unconscious  injury  she  might  have  done  to  an 
other.  But  Helen  remembered  the  words  that  had  been 
said  of  her  that  winter  morning  in  Lowton,  and  how 
haughtily  she  had  passed  through  the  room  in  reprov 
ing  them.  It  was  not  that  she  regretted  her  act,  or 
believed  the  man  beside  her  unkind  enough  to  be  di 
rectly  alluding  to  it  now.  But  she  recalled  it,  and  that 
he  had  fixed  the  beginning  of  Kitty's  mental  trouble 
later  than  this  first  accusation. 

They  did  not  sit  down  under  one   of  the  trees,   as, 


356  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

when  she  came  out,  Helen  had  meant  to  do.  But 
the  pine  woods  were  fragrant,  the  sky  beautiful,  the 
air.  delicious,  and  they  strolled  on  and  on,  one,  at 
least,  forgetful  that  they  would  have  to  walk  the  same 
distance  home  again.  They  talked  of  many  things — of 
new  inventions  and  discoveries,  of  the  history  that  the 
nations  are  living  to-day,  when  with  science  almost  an 
nihilating  time  and  space,  every  year  strikes  off  some 
fetter  of  race  or  caste  and  opens  up  to  all  countries 
common  interests  and  aims.  They  found  many  things 
which  they  loved  and  hated  together.  Holden  would 
have  been  supremely  happy,  but  for  the  ghost  of  that 
dead  love  which  he  could  never  hope  to  bring  back 
to  life  again;  and  never  would  Helen  have  enjoyed  a 
walk  more  but  for  that  harsh  judgment  which  still  hung 
over  her.  Her  companion  had  indeed  refused  to  think 
her  guilty  of  contemplating  murder,  but  he  still  be 
lieved  in  her  calculating  ambition,  and  she  was  too 
proud  ever  to  try  to  change  his  opinion. 

When  they  came  to  the  hotel  several  of  their   party 
were  seated  on  the  piazza. 


CHAPTER   XX. 

y/'ITTY  iookeci  Up  from  her  embroidery — she  was 
A V  doing  a  beautiful  pattern  in  the  Kensington  stitch 
— and  watched  the  progress  of  these  two  down  the  street 
and  up  the  steps  to  the  hotel. 

She  saw  upon  their  faces  that  look  of  mutual  satis 
faction  in  each  other's  presence  and  conversation  which, 
although  not  reaching  the  summit  of  happiness,  has  al 
ready  begun  to  climb  the  hill.  Helen's  face  was  grave 
under  her  broad-brimmed  mountain  hat,  as  if  her 
thoughts  had  been  dwelling  upon  some  serious  sub 
ject,  but  her  eyes  were  full  of  the  light  which  is  kin 
dled  when  high  thoughts  break  into  earnest  words  and 
are  answered  in  the  same  ardor.  Kitty  saw  the  loveli 
ness  of  her  expression,  and  saw  that  Holden's  eyes  rested 
upon  her,  and  that  his  face,  too,  was  aglow  with  feeling. 

All  her  ingenuity  exerted,  and  this  the  result ! 

She  could  not  bear  it  She  resumed  her  work,  made 
a  wrong  stitch,  and  looked  up  again  as  the  pair  stepped 
upon  the  piazza. 


358  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Mrs.  Barney  was  beside  her,  endeavoring  to  learn 
that  mysterious  performance  with  the  needle  and  thread 
which  produced  these  admirable  results.  Miss  Morris 
and  Bertha  were  near.  Mr.  Dewey  was  reading  a  novel 
to  them,  or  rather  he  considered  himself  occupied  in 
that  way;  but  his  paragraphs  were  so  short,  and  his 
comments  upon  them  so  lengthy  that  it  would  have 
been  nearer  the  truth  to  say  that,  instead  of  reading,  he 
was  filling  the  post  of  censor.  Mrs.  Edgerly  with  sev 
eral  acquaintances  was  seated  on  the  other  side  of  the 
broad  front  door  at  some  little  distance.  She  greeted 
Helen  audibly. 

"Oh,  here  you  are,"  she  said.  "  We  were  wondering 
what  had  become  of  you.  Where  have  you  been  ?  " 

"Over  in  those  woods,"  answered  Helen,  "and  it  was 
so  beautiful  there,  we  kept  walking  on,  and  forgot  how 
far  we  were  making  it  to  come  back." 

"Yes,"  said  Kitty  with  soft  distinctness  and  a  smile 
in  which  an  assumption  of  mirth  struggled  vainly  with 
malice,  "it  was  'beautiful,'  no  doubt;  monopolies  are 
always  charming,  I  believe,  to  the  monopolist.  We 
have  wanted  Mr.  Holden  all  the  morning,  truant  that 
he  is,"  she  went  on  to  say  hurriedly,  "to  show  us  that 
beautiful  view  he  promised  us  to-day.  We  were  talking 
of  it  last  evening." 

Every  one  about  her  had  heard  her  words  to  Helen; 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  359 

and  her  attempted  explanation  could  not  efface  the  rec 
ollection  of  them,  as  she  would  have  been  glad  if  it 
could,  when  she  saw  Mason  standing  in  the  doorway, 
his  eyes  upon  her  face. 

In  spite  of  herself,  the  hot  color  mounted  there,  and 
for  an  instant  her  fingers  were  unsteady  as  she  turned 
back  to  her  instruction  of  Mrs.  Barney. 

Helen  did  not  seem  to  hear  her,  or  in  any  way  to 
change  her  course;  yet  in  the  few  steps  she  took  from 
where  she  had  stood  to  the  hall  door,  Holden  saw  a 
haughtiness  come  into  her  face  which  had  been  wholly 
absent  from  it. 

' '  Mrs.  Mason, "  he  said  with  a  distinct  deliberation 
equal  to  her  own,  "  I  do  not  feel  it  necessary  to  apolo 
gize  for  my  monopoly;  for  if  I  had  not  seen  Miss  Bell 
go  off  for  a  walk  this  morning,  and  followed  her,  she 
would  have  enjoyed  the  beauty  and  coolness  alone.  I 
have  not  been  depriving  you  of  the  pleasure. of  her  society." 

With  a  bow,  he  passed  along  the  piazza  out  of  sight 

Andrew,  who  was  still  in  the  doorway,  saw  Helen 
stop  as  the  words  reached  her,  and  when  they  ceased, 
go  on  again  toward  the  stairs. 

She  was  in  her  room  until  dinner.  At  table  she 
was  cool  and  bright  in  manner.  That  mood  in  which 
Holden  had  seemed  to  be  getting  nearer  to  her  had 
quite  gone. 


360  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

After  dinner  he  stopped  her  in  the  hall. 

"You  are  coming  with — the  others,  to  see  that  view 
this  afternoon  ?  "  he  asked. 

"Thank  you;  but  I  have  work  to  do." 

"But  we  do  not  go  until  five;  that  will  surely  give 
you  time  enough." 

' '  I  am  afraid  not. " 

He  perceived  she  did  not  want  to  be  detained,  and 
let  her  pass. 

Kitty  saw  nothing  of  her  husband,  until  with  several 
others  she  returned  from  the  little  expedition  Jack  had 
spoken  of  the  day  before,  and  went  to  her  room  to 
make  ready  for  the  evening.  While  she  was  doing 
this,  Andrew  came  in. 

She  began  to  speak  volubly  of  the  view  she  had  just  seen. 

Her  husband  neither  answered  nor  interrupted  her. 
He  went  on  for  some  time  brushing  his  hair  in  the 
abstracted  way  of  a  person  whose  thoroughness  and 
length  of  time  in  performing  his  task  depend  much 
upon  the  fact  of  its  being  the  mechanical  expression 
of  mental  intentness  upon  some  far-away  object. 

Mrs.  Mason  talked  as  long  as  possible;  but,  although 
she  struggled  against  Andrew's  unresponsiveness,  it  con 
quered  her  at  last.  She  completed  her  toilet  almost 
in  silence.  At  length  she  stood  before  the  glass  arrang 
ing  the  lace  at  her  throat,  noticing  how  well  her  dress 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  361 

became  her,  and  thinking  with  a  thrill  of  satisfaction 
that  not  even  Andrew's  displeasure  could  take  away  her 
good  looks. 

"Kitty,"  he  said,  "I  always  thought  you  had  a  horror 
of  vulgarity." 

She  glanced  at  the  pretty,  delicate  face,  at  the  perfect 
color  and  fit  of  the  dress,  at  the  quiet  elegance  of  the 
whole  figure  reflected  before  her,  waiting  for  the  stimulus 
of  social  intercourse  to  give  it  the  irresistible  charm  of  a 
vivacity  never  superabundant,  kindling  it  into  brilliancy, 
like  the  flash  of  jewels.  Then  she  glanced  at  the  speaker 
with  a  smile  of  conscious  security  rippling  through  the 
interrogation  of  her  face. 

"You  did  a  vulgar  thing  this  morning,"  he  went  on, 
ignoring  the  charming  lady  of  fashion,  and  looking  the 
petty-souled  woman  full  in  the  eyes. 

The  woman  shrank  and  cowered  perceptibly. 

' '  I,  Andrew  ? "  she  said,  her  tone  of  wonder  breaking 
into  appeal. 

"  Yes, "  he  answered.  "Errors  in  speech,  and  failures 
in  conventional  rules  are  faults  of  education,  and  may 
mean  only  want  of  opportunity.  But  spitefulness  is  a 
coarse  grain  in  the  soul,  it  is  inherently  vulgar,  no 
surface  manner  can  ever  polish  it  out  of  its  nature,  and 
this  morning  your  spitefulness  came  up  against  the  com 
pany  with  a  rasp.  Everybody  saw  it" 


362  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  O,  Andrew,  I  did  not  mean  it !  I  spoke  before  I 
thought;  and,  besides,  I'm  sure  some  people  under 
stood.  " 

' '  Understood  that  your  speech  to  Helen  was  deserved  ? 
Do  you  mean  to  say  this  ? " 

But  Kitty  did  not  answer  this  question.  She  knew 
the  speech  was  not  deserved,  and  that  any  plausible 
attempt  to  prove  it  would  only  make  matters  worse  in 
Andrew's  eyes. 

"I  spoke  before  I  thpught,"  she  repeated  softly. 
"It  was  very  foolish." 

' '  Yes,  very  foolish, "  echoed  Andrew.  ' '  It  will  have 
one  good  result,  however,  which  is  more  than  can  be 
said  of  most  follies — it  will  no  doubt,  bring  the  two 
people  at  whom  it  was  aimed  to  a  better  understand 
ing  of  each  other." 

Kitty  turned  about  suddenly,  and  with  the  movement 
gave  her  husband  a  quick  look  of  consternation.  He 
met  it  with  a  short  laugh. 

"Don't  you  see?"  he  asked.  "You  have  forced  Hold- 
en  to  defend  her,  and  she  has  heard  him.  You  couldn't 
have  made  a  better  move." 

Kitty  said  nothing.     She  saw  it  all  well  enough  now. 

' '  But, "  he  added,  his  tone  changing  to  sternness, 
"another  such  attempt  will  make  you  and  me  take 
the  next  train  back  to  Lowton." 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  363 

She  looked  up  at  him.  Yes,  there  was  no  doubt  he 
meant  it.  Tears  came  into  her  eyes. 

"You  are  harsh  to  me,  Andrew.  I  own  it  was  a 
mistake — whichever  way  it  worked,  I  mean.  An  old 
mood  came  over  me.  But  I  am  not  all  like  this;  all 
the  'grain  of  my  soul,'  as  you  call  my  temper,  is  not 
coarse.  You  know  that." 

She  came  close  up  to  him  with  an  appeal  in  her  face 
he  found  it  hard  to  resist;  for  now,  at  least,  she  was  not 
a  scheming  woman;  she  was,  he  knew,  what  she  seemed 
to  be — a  loving  wife. 

"It  shall  not  happen  again,"  she  cried;  "but  don't 
speak  so,  and  don't  turn  me  out  of  your  heart.  Re 
member,  I  shall  be  homeless  if  you  do." 

No  amount  of  nurture  and  watching  will  implant  the 
nature  of  an  oak  in  a  flowering  shrub.  Andrew  Mason 
understood  this  now  more  clearly  than  ever  before;  so 
clearly  that  he  would  not  need  to  be  reminded  of  it 
again,  and  this  perception  changed  his  tone  to  his  wife. 

"Kitty,"  he  said,  laying  his  hand  gently  on  the  fingers 
that  were  tightening  over  his  arm,  "listen  to  me,  and 
try  to  be  wise.  Nature  never  meant  you  for  a  diplomat. 
You  lose  your  head  and  let  your  feelings  run  away  with 
you,  as  you  did  to-day.  You  have  not  the  brains  for 
large  schemes,  not  the  eagle  glance,  Kitty,  and  the  swoop 
of  a  bird  of  prey.  You  flatter  yourself  when  you  attempt 


364  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

that  role.  Now,  why  can't  you  be  content  with  being 
pretty,  and  attractive,  and  admired  ?  Unless,  as  Heaven 
grant,  your  ambition  one  day  take  a  nobler  flight.  Is 
your  own  happiness  so  light  a  thing  to  you,  Kitty,  that 
you  are  willing  to  destroy  other  people's?" 

"  But  this  was  not  a  happiness  that  had  been  gained." 

"I  believe  it  would  have  been,  but  for  you." 

Had  this  suspicion  come  through  Holden,  or  through 
Andrew's  keenness  of  sight  ?  In  either  case  she  had  no 
wish  to  pursue  the  subject  She  was  silent. 

Andrew  waited  a  few  moments,  looking  at  her  gravely. 

"Think  it  over  well,  Kitty,"  he  said  at  last.  "The 
Lord  made  you  small  in  some  ways  instead  of  great; 
and,  considering  the  new  disposition  you  have  developed, 
this  is  a  thing  to  be  very  grateful  for.  But  give  up 
trying  what  you  have  not  skill  enough  to  carry  through, 
and  turn  your  abundant  energies  to  something  good. 
In  such  a  cause  there  is  always  a  Goodness  and  Great 
ness  to  help  out  our  small  abilities  to  grand  results. 
And,  Kitty,  perhaps  I  ought  not  to  plead  for  myself, 
here,  but  I  want  to  respect  my  wife." 

He  laid  both  hands  upon  his  wife's  shoulders  as  he 
finished,  and  his  indolent  blue  eyes,  open  to  their  fullest 
extent,  looked  into  hers  with  a  depth  of  feeling  few  peo 
ple  had  ever  seen  in  them. 

An  expression  almost  of  terror  came  into  Kitty's  eyes, 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  365 

and  a  sense  of  helplessness,  quite  new,  overpowered  her. 
Had  she  lost  Andrew?  Her  social  triumphs  could  not 
console  her  then.  He  said  he  wanted  to  respect  his 
wife;  did  he  fail  to  do  this  now?  Whatever  disgrace 
had  fallen  upon  her,  Helen  was  the  cause  of  it  all. 
Yet  she  must  see  Helen  go  forward  to  her  success,  and 
not  lift  so  much  as  a  finger  to  bar  her  progress.  In  this 
game  she  had  been  playing,  all  power  of  motion  had 
been  taken  from  her  by  her  husband  as  if  he  had  been 
her  foe.  It  was  easy  to  see  that  she  was  an  injured 
woman,  that  her  husband,  whom  she  loved  so  dearly,  was 
cruel  to  her. 

Tears  gathered  in  her  eyes  and  fell  as  Andrew  watched 
her — tears  of  sorrow  over  her  possible  loss,  not  unmin- 
gled  with  those  of  chagrin  at  her  defeat. 

At  length  her  face  brightened.  She  had  come  to  feel 
that  her  husband  could  of  course  never  cease  to  love  her, 
and  his  appeal  had  elevated  her  mind.  She  was  willing 
to  yield  the  point  gracefully,  this  point  which  was  already 
lost,  and  so  win  back  his  respect. 

Her  head  sank  softly  until  her  cheek  rested  in  a  caress 
against  one  of  his  hands  upon  her  shoulders. 

''You  may  trust  me  now,  dear  Andrew,"  she  said. 
"I  will  not  offend  you  again.  I  will  try  to  be  as  you 
like." 

And   she   put   up   her    lips   pleadingly   to   be   kissed. 


366  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

firmly  resolved  that  not  even  the  sight  of  Helen  triumph 
ant  should  tempt  her  again,  especially  when  yielding 
would  take  her  back  to  Lowton  at  once. 

She  would  not  offend  him !  She  would  be  as  he 
liked  !  Was  this  what  his  appeal  had  meant  to  her  ? 
Andrew  asked  himself;  was  her  conscience  no  further 
reaching  than  the  horizon  of  his  desires  ? 

He  gave  her  the  kiss  very  gravely.  Then  he  turned 
away  with  a  sigh  and  left  her. 

Jack  Holden  was  standing  on  the  hotel  piazza.  He 
had  withdrawn  himself  slightly  from  the  others,  and 
stood  with  a  gloomy  face,  thinking.  The  last  week 
had  been  full  of  disappointment  and  trial  to  him.  Since 
that  walk  with  Helen,  which  Mrs.  Mason  commented 
on,  he  had  seen  nothing  of  her.  Of  necessity  he  had 
met  her  daily,  sometimes  hourly;  but  always  with  others, 
always  interested  in  somebody's  conversation  or  some 
body's  plan  for  amusement;  never  even  abstractedly  mov 
ing  off  by  herself,  in  which  case  he  was  desperate  enough 
"to  have  intruded  upon  her  reverie.  He  had  fully  resolved 
to  ask  her  to  marry  him;  he  feared  infinitely  more  than 
he  hoped  from  such  a  question;  in  truth,  he  scarcely 
hoped  at  all.  But  he  was  not  the  man  to  tempt  For 
tune's  frowns  by  cowardice.  And,  at  the  worst,  Helen 
should  have  the  proof  of  how  entirely  her  truth  and  no 
bility  had  conquered  him.  He  would  draw  out  the  sting 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  367 

from  Kitty  Mason's  slurs.  But  her  refusal  would  send 
him  away  from  her,  and  he  dreaded  this  unspeakably. 
He  determined  to  see  more  of  her,  to  talk  with  her  as 
he  had  done  the  other  morning  in  the  woods,  and  change 
her  present  mood. 

He  sometimes  forgot,  in  his  longings  for  even  so  much 
as  this,  that,  could  he  have  spoken,  he  must  for  a  time 
have  repressed  the  words  he  was  always  dreaming  of  say 
ing  to  her,  and  have  foregone  the  response  that  had  be 
come  the  only  bright  possibility  of  his  life.  The  impera 
tive  thing  seemed  a  word  and  tone  from  her  which  should 
be  all  his  own,  if  the  word  were  one  of  friendship  only, 
and  the  tone  breathed  nothing  but  quiet  trustfulness. 

He  had  not  supinely  borne  his  hard  fate;  he  had  strug 
gled  against  it,  but  vainly.  As  he  looked  into  the  sky, 
which  had  begun  to  soften  and  warm  in  that  afternoon 
glow  of  space  and  cloud-tint  that  precedes  the  sunset 
glory,  he  was  wondering  whether  it  would  be  of  any  use 
to  try  again  the  next  day  what  had  proved  unsuccessful 
twice  before.  For  he  had  twice  made  up  a  party  for  an 
excursion,  sure  of  finding  in  the  ride,  or  making  during 
the  day,  an  opportunity  to  be  with  Helen  and  talk  to 
her.  But  it  had  always  been  another  hand  that  gave 
her  whatever  help  the  climb  or  the  slippery  path  re 
quired,  and  if  by  the  exercise  of  a  rare  skill  he  succeeded 
in  securing  a  place  beside  her,  somebody  was  always  at 


368  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

the  other  hand,  for  if  the  rest  failed  them,  there  was  Mrs. 
Barney,  who  had  by  no  means  forgiven  her  nephew  for 
not  having  bought  Helen's  painting,  and  who  still  cher 
ished  the  delusion  that  he  was  very  far  from  appreciating 
the  young  lady. 

Jack  was  at  his  wit's  end.  Having  nothing  else  to 
do,  he  was  even  angry  with  Helen  for  considering  Kitty 
Mason  of  so  much  consequence.  But  here  he  reminded 
himself  that  it  cost  her  no  effort  to  keep  away  from  him. 
This  thought  did  not  have  a  tranquilizing  effect. 

Some  movement  about  him  made  him  suddenly  con 
scious  of  his  surroundings. 

There  sat  Bertha  Edgerly,  not  far  off,  with  Jenny  and 
Van  Huyden.  He  recalled  now  that  she  had  twice  looked 
up  at  him  within  the  last  few  moments.  He  was  sure  she 
would  speak  directly,  and  call  him  to  her.  He  must 
move  away  before  she  should  find  her  plea. 

But  at  the  first  step  a  hand  was  laid  upon  his  arm, 
and  a  face  looked  quizzically  up  into  his. 

It  was  that  of  the  well-known  and  admired  Mrs.  Lor- 
rimer.  She  and  Holden  were  old  friends;  but  she  had 
arrived  only  that  day,  and  had  not  spoken  to  him  before, 
except  across  the  dinner-table.  Helen  had  watched  her 
then  with  deep  gratitude,  for  it  was  Mrs.  Lorrimer's  hand 
that  had  been  stretched  out  to  help  her — it  was  she  who 
had  bought  her  picture  and  ordered  its  companion.  As 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  369 

the  lady  accosted  Holden  now,  Helen  was  not  on  the 
piazza;  the  mail  had  just  come  in  and  she  had  gone  to 
carry  a  letter  to  her  mother.  Holden  had  been  waiting 
for  her  to  come  back,  perhaps  with  the  vague  hope  of 
some  inspiration  seizing  him  upon  her  re-appearance,  or 
perhaps  waiting  only  that  he  might  watch  her  again. 

"Well,  Mr.  Jack,"  began  Mrs.  Lorrimer  softly — she 
was  a  good  deal  over  fifty  and  had  been  a  schoolmate  of 
his  mother — "I  have  seen  your  artist  friend,  and  I  don't 
know  that  I  wonder  at  your  infatuation.  Oh,  you  didn't 
tell  me  any  such  thing.  Why  should  you  ?  there  was  no 
need  of  it.  Why,  here  you've  been  hanging  about  for  the 
last  hour  waiting  for  her  to  esconce  herself  in  a  quiet  cor 
ner  where  you  might  follow  and  have  the  field  all  to  your 
self.  "  And  the  lady's  rippling  laugh  drew  Bertha's  eyes 
upon  her  immediately. 

But  Bertha  was  too  far  off  to  hear  her  words. 

"What  did  she  say  when  you  told  her  about  it?"  con 
tinued  Mrs.  Lorrimer  still  laughing. 

"I  tell  her  ! "  echoed  Holden.      " Not  for  the  world." 

"You  want  me  to  do  it,  then,"  persisted  the  other. 
"I  will  with  pleasure." 

' '  Heavens  !  No, "  cried  Jack,  with  an  expression  that 
increased  Mrs.  Lorrimer's  merriment. 

"You  have  not  done  so  much  as  intimate  that  you 
recommended  the  picture  to  me  ? "  she  exclaimed,  un- 


370  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

consciously  raising  her  voice  a  little  in  her  surprise. 
"You  have  kept  poor  Amy  and  her  ocean  waves  boxed 
up  all  this  time,  and  not  even  asked  the  artist  what  she  is 
going  to  give  you  for  a  mate,  nor  when  it  will  be  done  ? 
Patience,  thy  name  is  man  !  " 

As  Mrs.  Lorrimer  raised  her  head  in  speaking  these 
last  words,  she  gave  a  little  involuntary  start,  followed 
by  a  slight  inclination,  and  a  smile  so  arch,  so  full  of 
bright  mischief,  that  H  olden  knew  intuitively  what  had 
happened. 

Helen  had  returned.  Coming  from  the  hall  out  upon 
the  piazza,  she  had  caught  these  last  words  which  would 
have  been  an  enigma  to  nearly  all  the  others.  To  her 
they  were  plain  enough. 

As  Holden  turned,  their  eyes  met:  his  were  full  of  en 
treaty;  in  hers  there  was  a  flash  that,  he  feared,  argued 
badly  for  him. 

He  made  a  step  forward. 

She  drew  back,  so  that  they  were  still  the  same  dis 
tance  apart. 

At  this  instant  when  the  attitude  of  these  two  figures, 
the  intense  look  on  both  their  faces,  and  Mrs.  Lorrimer 's 
significant  smile  illuminating  the  situation  like  an  electric 
light  would  in  another  breathing  space  have  aroused  gen 
eral  attention,  the  tea-gong  sounded  deafeningly  in  the 
hall  and  brought  that  universal  movement  which  precedes 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  371 

a  general  uprising.  Sentences  halted  midway,  books 
were  closed,  newspapers  folded,  fancy-work  gathered  up 
to  be  brought  indoors,  and  Jenny  Grierson  sprang  to  her 
feet  lightly,  exclaiming,  "Oh,  I'm  so  hungry!"  The 
march  for  the  onslaught  began,  and  in  the  general  move 
ment  Helen  had  gone. 

Mrs.  Lorrimer  still  stood  with  her  hand  on  Holden's 
arm. 

"That's  the  way  of  it,"  she  commented.  "We  pass 
a  sleepless  night  with  the  weight  of  the  nation  on  our 
shoulders;  to-morrow  may  bring  us  sorrow,  ruin,  the 
death  of  our  brightest  hopes.  But  it  is  certain  to  bring 
us  the  breakfast-bell,  and  we  must  heed  that.  We  are 
harassed  by  anxieties  and  borne  down  by  defeats,  nothing 
seems  further  from  us  than  gayety,  or  more  undesirable 
than  a  longer  lease  of  life,  and  dinner  is  announced. 
We  must  go  to  dinner.  Our  fate  trembles  in  the  bal 
ance;  with  all  our  souls  we  are  pleading  for  mercy,  and 
for  hope;  and  the  tea-gong  peals  its  horrid  discords  into 
the  remotest  corners  of  our  helpless  tympanums;  and 
we  must  obey  that,  too.  Come,  my  friend,  I  have  not 
done  you  so  bad  a  turn,  though  it  was  unintentional." 

She  leaned  a  little  nearer  to  him,  and  her  eyes  looked 
up  into  his  with  their  keenest  glance.  Then  she  drew 
back  and  moved  away,  a  breath  of  soft  laughter  floating 
toward  him  as  she  passed. 


372  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

After  a  moment  Holden  followed.  He  knew  now 
what  he  would  do,  but  his  heart  was  far  from  echoing 
Mrs.  Lorrimer's  laughter. 

The  sunset  was  magnificent.  The  sky  glowed  with 
rose  and  violet,  with  gold  and  crimson,  here  vividly 
contrasted,  there  toned  to  every  shade  in  the  scale  of 
color,  until  upon  the  border-land  of  the  dun  masses  on 
a  distant  horizon  they  melted  into  soft,  warm  gray,  and 
into  pearly  clouds. 

"Hurry,  good  people,  or  you  will  lose  all  this  gor 
geous  skyscape,"  cried  Kitty  Mason.  She  had  left  the 
dining-room  a  few  moments  before,  and  coming  back 
now  stood  in  the  doorway,  a  fleecy,  scarlet  shawl  about 
her  shoulders  while  a  corner  of  this  vivid  drapery  was 
lying  on  her  dark  hair. 

Mr.  Van  Huyden  looked  up  at  her,  then  whispered 
to  Miss  Grierson  whom  he  had  chosen  to  sit  beside, 

"Your  aunt  is  very  effective." 

Jenny  had  it  in  her  heart  to  answer, 

"Quite  too  'effective'  sometimes."  But  she  only 
looked  at  him  with  a  smile,  and  said,  "Yes."  In  a 
moment  she  added,  "I  am  going  to  join  her.  I  don't 
want  to  miss  the  beautiful  sunset." 

"Nor  do  I,"  cried  Van  Huyden.     And  they  rose. 

Several  others,  catching  their  enthusiasm  kindled  by 
the  flaming  splendors  without,  followed  them  into  the 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  373 

open  air.  Helen  was  among  the  number.  As  she 
passed  through  the  hall  Jack  was  by  her  side. 

"Miss  Bell,"  he  began  at  the  door,  "will  you  give 
me  a  few  minutes?  I  want  to  explain  something  to 
you. " 

Could  Helen  have  heard  him  ?  Her  eyes  were  still 
fixed  on  the  sunset. 

"How  magnificent  it  is!"  she  said  to  Mrs.  Edgerly, 
into  whose  arm  she  had  slipped  her  hand  as  they  left 
the  dining-room, 

1 '  Don't  you  want  a  walk,  Helen  ? "  cried  Bertha, 
coming  up  with  several  others. 

"Yes,"  she  answered  readily. 

"And  you,   too,   Mr.   Holden  ? " 

"Thank  you,  Miss  Edgerly;  but  I  have  just  pledged 
myself  to  explain  to  Miss  Bell  a  little  matter  of  business 
which  I  have  reason  to  think  has  been  misunderstood, 
something  about  an  order  for  a  picture  she  is  painting. 
It  is  necessary  to  make  it  clear  to  her  at  once,  if  she 
will  have  the  kindness  to  give  me  a  few  minutes  now." 

While  Bertha  stood  in  open-eyed  surprise,  Helen  fold 
ing  her  white  summer  shawl  about  her,  stole  a  glance 
at  Holden. 

She  had  never  seen  his  face  so  full  of  nerve  and  res 
olution.  He  would  surely  give  this  explanation  to  her 
sometime,  and  she  owed  it  to  him  to  listen. 


374  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

Excusing  herself  to  Bertha  by  a  word,  she  turned  and 
moved  beside  him  down  the  steps  and  through  the  crowd 
of  promenaders. 

They  went  on  for  some  time  in  silence.  It  was  Helen's 
part  to  listen,  and  Holden  was  in  no  haste  to  speak. 
Now  she  was  near  him,  they  were  walking  side  by  side. 
When  he  had  spoken  they  would  be  separated.  Yet  she 
was  here  only  on  the  plea  of  his  speaking,  he  had  some 
thing  to  say,  and  he  must  say  it. 

Still  they  went  on  silently  a  few  steps  further.  The 
greater  part  of  the  crowd  had  fallen  some  distance  behind, 
and  now  they  were  quite  alone.  They  reached  the  end 
of  the  sidewalk,  and  he  made  a  move  to  enter  the  road 
beyond  it,  whose  grassy  edges  were  broad  and  good 
enough  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  country  people.  She 
hesitated  an  instant,  then  moved  forward  slowly,  saying 
as  she  did  so, 

' '  You  had  something  to  explain  to  me  ? " 

"Yes,"  he  answered,  "I  want  to  explain  to  you  that 
fact  about  your  paintings  which  Mrs.  Lorrimer's  care 
lessness  made  you  aware  of  this  afternoon." 

"And  perhaps,"  said  Helen,  "Mrs.  Lorrimer  will  not 
take  the  other." 

He  stopped  abruptly,  and  turned  upon  her  with  some 
thing  almost  like  fierceness. 

"Yes,  I  will  have  it,"  he  cried,    "since  I  have  lost 


A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK.  375 

you,  blind  fool  that  I  was  !  I  will  have  something  your 
hand  has  touched,  something  you  have  loved.  I  hold 
you  to  your  compact,  Helen." 

This  was  not  the  way  he  had  meant  to  begin,  not  what 
he  had  meant  to  say,  but  her  voice  had  overthrown  his 
well-built  sentences. 

"I  know  that  I  once  insulted  you,"  he  said,  as  she  was 
silent.  "I  am  not  likely  ever  to  forget  it;  the  thought 
eats  into  my  life.  Not  that  I  do  not  understand  your 
nobleness  well  enough  now,  to  be  sure  you  would  for 
give  me.  Perhaps,  seeing  how  bitterly  I  repented,  you 
have  done  that  long  ago."  Helen  made  a  slight  move 
ment,  but  said  nothing.  ' '  But  my  punishment  was  that 
your  own  hand  proved  to  me  how  I  had  thrown  away 
the  possibility  of  happiness.  I  don't  mean  you  ever 
really  cared  about  me,"  he  went  on  hastily;  "but  it 
seems  to  me  that  at  one  time  with  patience,  and  my  own 
love,  I  might  have  taught  you  this.  You  remember 
what  you  wrote?" 

"No,"  tremulously. 

"You  don't  remember?" 

"No.     What  was  it?" 

Holden's  face  lighted.  "No  matter,"  he  said  eagerly. 
' '  It  may  have  been  all  a  mistake.  It  may — " 

"What  was  it?"  asked  Helen.  "I  don't  understand 
you.  What  did  I  write?" 


376  A    LAZY  MAN'S    WORK. 

' '  It  was  this, "  he  answered  handing  her  a  scrap  of 
paper  that  had  been  crumpled  and  smoothed  out  again. 
' '  Miss  Edgerly  threw  it  away  after  she  had  finished  ex 
amining  it."  And  he  related  Bertha's  finding  it  one 
morning  in  her  work-basket. 

Helen  held  out  the  paper  under  the  paling  sky,  and 
read, 

"'Nor  grateful  sunshine  nor  patient  rain 
.Can  bring  dead  love  to  life  again.'" 

"You  wrote  it?"  he  asked,  watching  her  breathlessly, 
and  trying  to  hope  against  hope. 

"No." 

"That  is  not  your  handwriting?"  he  cried  in  sudden 
joy,  ready  to  believe  the  whole  scene  of  that  morning  a 
concerted  scheme  to  deceive  Him  a  second  time. 

"Yes,"  said  Helen;  "I  wrote  it  down,  if  you  mean 
that." 

"But  you  don't  believe  it?" 

"I  do,"  she  answered.  "How  can  we  restore  the 
dead  ? " 

Holden  was  gloomily  silent. 

They  walked  on  further. 

"Tell  me  this,"  he  broke  out  at  last.  "Do  you  think 
that  even  at  the  very  first  you  could  have  learned  to  care 
for  me  ? " 


A    LAZY  MAWS    WORK.  377 

"Yes." 

Another  long  silence. 

"Helen,  can't  you  possibly  come  back  to  that  mood 
again  ?  Be  my  wife,  and  I  will  not  despair,  I  will  make 
you  care  for  me." 

He  turned  to  her  as  he  spoke  with  a  quick  gesture 
of  entreaty. 

She  made  no  answer. 

"Once  I  hoped,"  he  went  on;  "once  life — a  higher 
life  than  I  have  ever  lived — lay  open  to  me;  but  my 
mistakes,  yes,  and  sin — for  it  was  a  sin  to  doubt  you — 
have  blocked  up  my  way.  Once  you  might  have  cared 
something  for  me,"  he  cried,  "and  now — " 

His  eyes  were  lowered  dejectedly.  The  flutter  of 
small  white  objects  falling  at  his  feet  made  him  stop 
suddenly.  She  had  been  tearing  to  pieces  the  scrap 
with  her  writing  on  it. 

As  the  last  bit  fell  from  her  fingers,  she  looked  up  at 
him. 

For  a  moment  he  was  bewildered.  Then  his  face 
flamed  with  joy. 

He  held  out  his  arms  to  her. 

"  'And  now/  "  she  said,  taking  up  his  words,  "  'now,' 
I  love  you." 

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rv. 


